The Animorphs are not an idle group, after their day of rest, they quickly went back to work, Old and New Blood alike have their own issues to sort through in their preparations to launch their war effort. Jake attempts to track his brother's movements, Rachel and Cassie attempt to reconnect with Tobias, whilst Alice contacts Marco to begin pre-emptively enlightening him to the Old Blood's secrets, in the meantime, James and Ben are tackling their own issues. But throughout it all, the Animorphs wait, wait for word of Harry's mission, wait for something that might not come at all. More and more, through the veil of silence, they can taste the grim reality that the time for conflict with Them is fast approaching, yet still, all the Animorphs can do is wait with...

Trepidation

Day 21, Morning

I kept watching him, watching my brother. Tom seemingly acted almost perfectly, he was the same as before, just...less caring about certain things. I watched him with what few means I had, my super hearing aided me considerably, my sharp ears told me everything that happened in my house. It's not just footsteps, the doors, the phone, the TV, the plumbing, not even so much as a single scratch escaped my notice while I was listening for it.

Nothing. There was nothing unusual, no secret phone calls on numbers I don't recognize, no whisperings about going to suspicious events, not even any euphemisms. Nothing. I kept observing, though, I briefly considered the thought that I was going crazy, that Tom wasn't hijacked by an alien invader, but that he...chose to be involved.

Just then I heard it, Tom left. He hasn't told anyone, Mom and Dad were gone, and I was playing video games in my room, the TV muted. In a second I turned everything off, stripped to my morphing underwear, placed my clothes under the bed, opened my window a crack, just enough, and changed.

Peregrine Falcon.

It all came easy, my patchy bodyhair spread and turned into feathers, I shrunk as my knees reversed, my bones realigned, upper lip and nose fused into a beak, my ears shrunk into their head and my arms thinned, their mass replaced with flight feathers. The sound of shifting sand only lasted for ten seconds, and I was done.

I lifted off the ground with my talons and flapped, flying out of the window through my curtains. The tree was right in front of me, just as always, convenient for occasions like this. I swiveled my head right and left before finding my brother, with Tom in my sight I flapped in the hot summer air, rising under my own power until I reached the road, from then on I just caught the thermals and circled. I rose, high high above the neighborhood I lived in, every circling, though, I checked again to make sure I didn't lose him. My brother was on a bike, pedalling through the brutal heat, and finally I turned and began to follow, soaring high above.

He turned and kept turning on that bike of his, weaving through the traffic, nobody in their right mind would pay attention to him. But deep down I wanted them to, wanted them to realize what was wrong, wanted someone to see his true nature, scream, call the cops, and...and then what? What would happen, then? Tom would be no doubt out of my hair, but would he die, then?

When I close my eyes I still see Tom in that recording at the beach party, with that mottley crew of Sharing strangers, involved in human trafficking and organ harvesting, and beyond doubt worse. I cannot believe Tom would ever choose to take part in this, it doesn't make any sense. My brother would never choose to go along with this.

But what if he was? A dark corner of my brain asked. What if he has betrayed everyone? Everything? To work for an alien empire?

And the leader of the resistance sleeps just a few dozen feet away from him. If I am to continue operating like this, then it's clear that I'm going to need to have constant vigilance, I can't let my guard down even once...because if he finds me, then who knows what Tom, or the thing that replaced him, would do. He'll try to kill me or worse, if I'm discovered, then Tom, my own brother, will kill me. Or, he'll try, but an Animorph is not just a shapeshifter, The Cube has given me capabilities totally unknown to the average human, if I'm discovered, then...that would be it, wouldn't it? He will try to attack me, I'll resist, but even if I win, that fight may very well end in fratricide.

Will I have to kill my own brother?

Just then Tom stopped pedalling, he was in the mall's parking lot, placing his bike on the bike rack, and just then I saw them.

Jacob Skridge, that boy was not alone, he was with probably seven other people, all adults, one of whom I recognized from the recording.

Jacob, too? I observed as he met Tom with an eager handshake, they then went into the mall.

I remember from my date with Cassie, the mall got shut down because of a supposed gas leak, but the only leakage being done was construction. This is one of the entrances to their stronghold, it's in the Mall, it must be! I had to get closer.

With nothing left to do I retracted my wings in, adjusted my tail feathers, and swooped down. The Peregrine falcon was the fastest bird in the world, able to swoop down at an astonishing 200 miles per hour, a world record no other bird has broken. I trusted the falcon, trusted its instincts, to do as it did its entire life. The ground raced forward, and the falcon's eyes did much work, everything remained clear as I let the animal's mind takeover.

There! Perfect, there was a group of pidgeons on the area of the roof right next to the skylight. Oblivious to myself and my awesome speed, I circled in the air as I descended, going faster and faster, then I held my talon out in a fist as I flew through the flock...

NO! I screamed in my head as I landed.

I looked behind myself to see the damage.

The pidgeons were all flying away, fleeing the scene, all except one, it fluttered around on the ground for a few seconds before going limp and still, its head was...gone.

I shuddered on the inside. By God, what did I do?

But that's nothing else, the skylight was just a couple feet away, I walked over there with my awkward falcon gait and got on the glass to look at the mall goers below. My eyes were in the perfect position to look into both the first and second floors where the construction workers had entered.

And right on schedule, I saw them, Tom, Jacob, and the others were moving, a single coherent group separated by a few feet from eachother. Nobody would know they were together unless they saw that greeting at the front door.

Whiiir. I heard the electronic noise come from somewhere above me.

Nuts, surveilance camera, I realized without looking. But is it one of Them behind that lens, or someone who wanted a really good look at a bird that just lighted down on a skylight?

They own the security of this place, they must, how else would they be able to make what was no doubt an entrance to their fortress in the mall?

But Tom and the others disappeared from sight, they entered the clothing department, the 2nd floor concealing them from my sight.

With nothing left to do, I lighted off the glass roof, flapping laboriously to gain lift. There was nothing else to do, my parents will be home soon anyway, I can't leet them get home before me first, even with my door locked.

Morning

We set down on the table, Cassie and I, with Tobias. It wasn't long before Ellen returned, holding a box, and a girl in tow, wearing a very worn dress.

"Here you go, Rachel," Ellen's wrinkled face held a bright eyed smile. "Exactly as you requested."

I took the box in hand and opened it, the alien garment stared me in the face with all its colors and patterns, a work of art. I touched it inside the box and squeezed, feeling the tiny shock that let me know I had claimed it as my own.

"Thanks Ellen," I said. "It looks perfect."

"Oh, no problem," Ellen said, motioning to the girl who walked in beside her. "The process was made much easier by my apprentice, she's rough around the edges but she has a lot of potential."

The girl walked around with a walking stick, and like Harry, was bald, having not even a trace of eyebrows over her pale gray eyes, which were the color of shale, she was a complete stranger, but her cream colored dress with geometric patterns was recognizable. She looked worse than Harry, but a lot better than she used to.

The hemovorvoros girl! Rachel remembered.

"Hey, what's your name?"

"Terra," the girl said weakly, extending her hand.

"I'm Rachel, and thanks for the clothes," she said. "I know that what you went through is really really rough, and to be on your feet so soon afterwards and doing things, it takes strength. Once you get your wings back, then you'll really get into business!"

"Thank you," Terra said, her words were slow, but her eyes were bright and smile wide as she moved to sit down at the table, resting her walking stick so it leaned on the table.

All of a sudden a deafening screeching noise echoed throughout the room, vibrating everyone's chests, the lights flickered on and off, it seemed as if the sanctuary itself was shrieking in my face! I put my hands to my ears, but just as quickly as it started, the screeching noise was over, the light stopped flickering.

Ellen had gotten up and was holding Terra steady, who had passed out.

"That is...new," Tobias commented, clearly shaken.

"What's going on?" I asked.

((Ben, what's going on?)) Ellen asked.

((I apologize, everyone. I just tried to activate The Reactor's self diagnostic function. I know your ears are hurting, but everything is fine, except my own ears, which are destroyed.))

I looked around the room after I finished helping place Terra on one of the chairs, checking surveying everything, the cieling, the walls, the lights, the computers, even the table and chairs. And for the first time I realized just how decrepit everything here was, the inhabitants of this old fortress were the star players, but this is still an ancient abandoned fortress.

"Hey Tobias," I said.

"Yeah, Rachel?" He said.

"Let's go out."

"Go out?" He asked. "Where?"

"The town," I explained with a smile.

"What...? Why? Is something wrong?" He asked.

"Yeah, something is very wrong," I said. "I mean, how long has it been since we actually hung out with eachother? I mean, come on, it's been five years since we saw you!"

Understanding dawned on Tobias' eyes, and a deep sadness, too.

"That would be wonderful," he said. "But I'm afraid just me coming into town, as myself...it's not so simple."

"Why not?" Cassie asked, smiling. "If it's a matter of fashion, then Rachel's got you covered."

"Yeah, your face is a bit pale and gaunt, but the biggest issue in blending in is your clothes," I said. Motioning towards him, his black and green trench coat, the beads on his collar. "I'll be frank, you dress like Neo if he was a superhero from a post-apocalyptic horror movie."

Tobias let out a laugh, smiling. "Well...in a sense you're not wrong."

"And those rods around your waist!" I said. "You need to move them out of the way everytime you sit down like you're in a skirt and going to the bathroom, what are those things even for?"

"Ah, these?" Tobias said, holding up one of the metallic constructs, and showing the palm of his left hand, or rather, the palm of its gray tipped glove, which had a blue strap across from it. "They're for diffusing light, and other energies, too, if need be. They help protect me against alien weaponry, they also diffuse light, in other words, they're the reason why when I activate this...!"

With a smile, he pressed his gray tipped pinky finger to the strap and all of a sudden, Tobias vanished into thin air! No trace of him remained, not even his shadow!

"...Nobody will ever find me unless I want them too!"

"That's so cool!" I said, smiling. "Just imagine all the things you could get away with!"

"Heh," Tobias chuckled as he appeared again. "Imagine indeed. So...on the subject of visiting the city with you, I'll think about it. But you are right, in that we haven't really connected with eachother in a long time, so, where do we begin?"

"Well, you travelled arounda lot, right?" Cassie said. "Have you ever gone to Antarctica?"

"Heavens, no!" Tobias said. "I can endure the chill of the stratosphere at night in the middle of a rainstorm, but even for me, that land is way too extreme!"

Tobias got a thoughtful look on his face for a second.

"I have, however, been to the Arctic, and while the cold there was miserable, I could handle it...barely."

"Did you see any Polar Bears?" Cassie asked eagerly. "Walruses? Or Seals?"

"I did see a polar bear, once. I even acquired it," Tobias bragged.

"No Walruses or Seals, however, but the highlight of my time there was when I shacked up with this Inuit family."

"Oh, wow, really?" Cassie asked.

"What's an Inuit?" I asked.

Tobias turned to face me with a smile.

"Eskimo."

"Oh," I realized. "Did he know you could morph? Or did you keep the secret around him?"

Tobias' smile grew wider.

"Their little boy asked me to turn into an gas-lit oven."

Noon

"Hey, Marco!" Dad hollered from downstairs. "Your date's here!"

I spit out my Mt. Dew and immediately paused my game of Mortal Kombat.

I don't remember asking a girl out on a date? I thought to myself as I got up, left my room, and walked down the stairs. I wonder who it is, not Darlene, I hope?

When I opened the door I saw a little girl with dirty blond hair, just my age, holding a picnic basket, wearing a dress with jeans underneath.

"Uh," I said. "Do I know you?"

((Marco, it's me,)) Alice said in my head, causing me to blink and take a step back in shock.

"A-" I almost blurted out.

((Yes, it's Alice,)) She said. ((We need to talk.))

"Ready to go on that picnic?" Alice's disguise said to me in a voice that was a complete contrast to what was going on in her head.

"S-sure thing, honey," I said with a smile.

Honey? GAH!

We were in the middle of the woods, our bikes parked in a meadow right next to a large tree. Of course, we had a lunch unpacked on a blanket in front of us, and we had just gotten done eating it.

"So," I began after I swallowed the lat bite of my sandwhich. "What brings you here?"

"I just want to talk," she said. "There are some things going on...there's a lot more to ETCS than it first seems."

"You worked with them, right?" I asked. "That's what you told me, that you were in way deeper than even my Dad. How deep, exactly?"

"I was one of the leaders of the Cyberwarfare Division," Alice confessed, shrugging her shoulders. "In the Low Fort."

My eyes widened, Dad only mentioned the Low Fort a few times, but everytime he did, he always described it as THE most important place on earth, second only to ETCS' Global HQ itself!

"That's some serious brass."

"Yes," Alice said. "A lot higher in rank than they'll ever let your father be."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Only certain personalities are allowed to ascend the ranks, to handle their truly sensitive information and assets, and your Dad isn't one of them."

"Huh," I said, glowering. "Good to know that promotion he's been expecting isn't going to come."

"No, that's actually a very good thing," Alice said. "It means your Dad has a character that's too good for ETCS' High Command to accept, it also means that the second an individual with that character, who's just as skilled at his job as he is comes along, he'll be demoted, or fired and replaced."

My brows furrowed in confusion as the birds sang, the wind began blowing through the woods, swaying the grass and flowers in the meadow and the branches in the trees. The clouds darkened.

"Your connection to the organization has some benefits, but your proximity has some downsides as well."

"You're looking really shady, Alice," I said. "You clearly have something on your mind, why don't you just say it?"

Alice looked at me with her teenaged eyes, those brown chocolatey eyes were piercing me.

"Okay, I do have a problem. you're an excellent Animorph Marco; you're vigilant, thoughtful, and always thinking ahead. But the fact of the matter is, your attachment to ETCS makes you a liability."

My mouth dropped and my mind went still with shock.

Liability?

"You may be just as vigilant as any good Animorph, but your automatic trust of the organization is a hole in your defenses. It means we...we can't rely on you should we ever get in a fight with ETCS allied forces."

"What?!" I asked, voice outraged.

"That's bogus, insane!" I said. "I like ETCS, so what? how does my 'proximity' to the organization endanger the group or bring my loyalty into question? I'm not going to snitch on you, or my friends! I may be sneaky, but...a betrayal, like that? Betraying Jake? Cassie? Tobias? No way!"

"So, if it's a choice between the Animorphs, and ETCS, both as a whole, you'll choose your fellow Animorphs?"

I stuttered, the words dying in my throat as a croak.

"O-of course," I said. "Of course I choose the Animorphs, wherever Jake goes, I go. It's clear that The Parasite isn't going to stop, unless we stop them, that aside, Dad a-and Mom, they would've...they would've accepted Elfangor's offer at the Ghost Town, were they in my position."

My voice deflated as I realized, retroactively, how my prejudices showed their ugly face. Alice's borrowed eyes staredinto me, with a look that pierced me in my soul, that astonished enlightened look that just prompted me to spill everything.

"They would've made the same choice in an instant, the one that I...didn't. I may have not taken the morphing power at the same time Jake and the girls did, but I got in when I could. Mom and Dad would've done the same, and I'm not going to disappoint them!"

Alice stared at me, dead silent as the wind blew through the woods.

"And if we ever cross swords with ETCS, when the nails are being hammered, will you fight with us, then? What are you prepared to do in order to defend your friends?"

"I'll...I'll do anything," I whispered.

"Are you prepared to kill them, if need be?" Alice asked somberly. "Kill Them? Kill their hosts? Kill ETCS?"

Once more, my voice died in my throat, I looked down, deep in contemplation. I didn't like what Alice was saying, snd I really, really didn't like the places that woman's taking my mind to.

But my mind would've wandered there, anyway, wouldn't it?

"You're real sneaky, you know that, right?" I asked Alice.

"It's my job," Alice said. "I'm a professional spy."

"A spy?" I asked. "For who?"

"You," she said. "I'm on Tobias' payroll, and he defers leadership to Jake, so he's my leader by default."

"Tobias?" I asked. "And the other Old Bloods, Ben, Ellen, Harry, James and the rest of the rescues. Do they think of Tobias as their leader, too?"

"Yes," Alice said. "He is the son of an incredibly powerful and beloved figure, and mentored under him for years, he is Elfangor's successor. We're loyal to him, but as I said, he defers to Jake."

"And if it's a choice between Jake and Tobias?"

"We'll choose Tobias," Alice clarified. "No offense, but Jake's an unknown factor. We know nothing about him, all any of us have is Tobias' word to go off of. But do you really think Jake would betray Tobias? Or the other way around? We know that in order to fight this conflict, we cannot afford to tolerate division. A cause without unity, is no cause at all."

"Fair point, anyway," I said, getting up from the picnic blanket. "Thanks for the picnic, as for your words; Do you really think that I can't vouch for us? Avoid the fight to begin with?"

((And do you think that ETCS would care? Do you think that they would tolerate a shapeshifter among them long enough to listen to a word you say? Do you think that just having the morphing tech wouldn't classify you as an alien to be captured or exterminated in their eyes?))

"..."

Evening

They were inside the orientation room again, the screens were playing footage of the Antimorphs, in all their uncanny glory.

"And how do you plan on defeating the Antimorphs?" Jacob asked after he was done perusing the screens. "If they can, and do, destroy armies at will, then how can we possibly stop it?"

"The Antimorphs, like I said earlier, have a greatly reduced intelligience when compared to their old selves. They're more animalistic, feral, their capacity to strategize has been compromised in order for them to follow orders. So we're working on setting up a trap, one that, judging by the profile of this individual's motives we've been able to put together, won't be able to resist."

"They're acting alone?" Jacob asked in surprise.

Temrash nodded.

"Yes, or so it seems, the Antimorph Project was dispered, very few of the mutants escaped. But while it is likely just a single Antimorph, you have to remember, they're almost as social as humans, and would prefer to stick with members of their own kind, it's unlikely to be just a single Antimorph, however, the number would be small, two or three, four at most."

"What does this Antimorph Pack even want?"

"Heh, Pack? Really now..." Temrash teased with a smile. "From what we've surmised is that they're looking for Pemalite relics."

"Pemalite relics? What's a Pemalite?" Jacob asked.

"The former rulers of the galaxy," Temrash explained. "For millions of years, they maintained order and every space-faring civilization that mattered were subservient to them and paid them tribute in resources. With their hegemony, they became the most powerful race the galaxy has ever known, they had no weaknesses, and nobody could challenge them. They reigned supreme, nobody could contest their throne, until The Howlers did."

"Both of those species fought in a million year-long war, the Pemalites were victorious, but the conflict was so cataclysmic that both tyrant and usurper were wiped out. None of that's really relevant to anything, the important fact is that the technology they left behind is more advanced than anything anyone has ever made. No one was able to match their technological prowess, even though the Howler's Rebellion ended 600,000 years ago."

"Oh my God," Jacob whispered. "Just how powerful are these Pemalite relics?"

"Entire interstellar empires, EMPIRES, Jacob," Temrash emhpasized, placing his hands on Jacob's shoulders. "Arose, thrived, and died by how many Pemalite Relics they controlled, the types they possessed, how effectively they wielded them, and how many their enemies had. Hell, we need something only accessible from our homeworld to survive. The only reason we're even capable of leaving our planet and surviving is because we were lucky enough to find a Pemalite outpost with a device capable of replicating that resource!"

Jacob's eyes widened in realization. "Wait, is that why the Andalites are after you? They want the Pemalite relics in your possession?"

"That's the 'publicly stated' reason, yes," Temrash explained. "At the moment, us and our alliance controls the largest amount of Pemalite relics, second only to the Andalites themselves, and they feel their own hegemony weakening. They've grown angry, desperate, now that they realize that my people can actually challenge them. We've done an excellent job of hiding them, but this planet, your planet, is the tipping point in which our war will finally be decided."

"And that's why the Andalites entered a bragain with our government," Jacob said. "In return for power, they want ETCS to crush you once they reach the stars."

"And then dispose of humanity once the dictators complete their purpose."

Jacob stood up from his seat and looked at the screen.

"And what am I supposed to do, other than what I'm already doing, now?" Jacob asked. "With my full membership with The Sharing...what can I do with it?"

"Nothing, for now" Temrash said. "We're an expanding operation, there will be plenty of time, and room for you to consider your involvement. Now I know this is a difficult thing to swallow, and you've been working hard, take this night off, you must rest."

Temrash than began walking out of the room, leaving Jacob to his own devices.

"Temrash, Tom," Jacob said, prompting The Controller to turn around behind himself.

Jacob in turn turned around behind to face him, a faire in his eyes, a fire he himself ignited.

"I will do my part to stop the Andalites, and bring ETCS to justice for their unspeakable crimes. I will not rest until it's done."

Temrash nodded in acknowledgement, a solemn look of finality on Tom's face. He turned around and exited the room, and as he opened the door, his mask broke, giving way to a wide and devious grin as the door closed behind him.

Evening

An eel was slithering through a pipe, a wierd spiked disk-like object in its mouth as it travelled, it swam upwards with the pipe and emerged in an open tank of water, once its entire body was out of the pipe it leapt out of the tank and landed on the floor. Immediately the eel began growing, change shape, rising until Ben stood up and removed the patching device from his mouth.

((The plumbing has been repaired,)) Ben informed the inhabitant of the house. ((You won't need to worry about your toilet not flushing anymore.))

Next he was on a roof, removing a strange rocky moss that began growing on the house like a malignant tumor, using a power cutter to remove the house-destroying plant from the premises.

Ben was hard at work, modifying, repairing, refurbishing, furnishing, repairing, assisting the inhabitants of the Sanctuary with every fault that's showing up in their homes.

((Hey, Ben, is my table supposed to be melting?))

((The door just refuses to open!))

((My entire cieling just won't stop dripping!))

Fly in, fly out, morph, repair the problem, fix whatever they need, make everyone's lives a little more tolerable.

((Ben, I'm sorry to say this, but my fridge just started sinking into the floor.))

((My bed just swallowed me, and I can't get out! Please, help!))

((The sinks just fell off the wall, Ben...all three of them...))

((Something's wrong with my plumbing, the water from the faucets are green!))

Clank, bang, twist, drill, fuse, cut, dehumidify, Ben does it all, can do it all, and he morphs so often that his body's stamina resets, so he can constantly does all of it. He tends to the resident's every mechanical needs. But in a city as run-down and decrepit as this one...

((Ben! Why did my lights flash like it's a rave and then explode?!))

((This basement's flooding again!))

((The stairs just aren't holding anything! They're too bendy.))

((Hey, my house's heating system has gone haywire, it's roasting us to death!))

((Something's wrong with the toilet!))

At the end of it all, when the calls for help finally died down, Ben walked back to the Security Tower where James was waiting.

"Gah, of all the people who arrived at this place, NOT A SINGLE ONE OF THEM IS STRONG ENOUGH TO HELP ME!" Ben shouted in despair at the top of his lungs, his words of rage echoing through the empty and dark halls.

Ben finally sauntered into The Security Room, where James was waiting with The Stratokite on the table.

"Having a hard time?" He asked.

((Hard is an understatement,)) Ben said. ((But I'm here. You said there's something wrong with the Stratokite?))

"Yeah," James said. "Take a look here, at the container on the chain designed to carry a person, safely, through the clouds.

Ben walked slowly to the part in question, and when he opened the casket, he noticed the problem right away.

((Hello.))

"Hello indeed," James said. "There's an issue with how the casket connects with the chain."

((Not to mention the oxygen mask is attached to its tube by a thread!)) Ben proclaimed out loud. ((The insulation's compromised, too. Fixable, but it's not as bad as it could be. The biggest problem with that casket, all of them in fact, are how they're attached, they're going to need multiple connecting points to the tether, and for that it'll require an increase in size. Something I'm sure the passengers would appreciate.))

"Yeah, but what bout the bird cages?" James asked. "And there are several places where I think the tether needs repair. Not to mention the lightning protection on the kite itself."

Ben stopped, looking at the aircraft with a critical eye under the overhanging light.

((I'm going to need to examine the whole thing, then,)) Ben said thoughtfully. ((Let's pray nothing's wrong with the axial stabilizers, if there was then your journey's going to have to wait a week, at minimum.))

The Old Blood examined the Stratokite's unwound cable, checking it for more faults and tears.

"Is something on your mind?"

"Yes," Ben said. "I worry for the New Bloods, Jake, Marco, and especially Cassie."

"Cassie?" James asked. "What about her worries you? Didn't you say she's the kindest person you've met in ten years?"

"That she is," Ben said. "She's kind, empathetic, trusting...too trusting. If she lets the wrong person get close enough to her, then I believe she, out of all of them, is the most vulnerable to corruption. Humanity is teeming with freaks who prey on people's good nature in order to get what they want, I know this too well, and who knows what manipulation tactics They will employ on her."

"Ah, that's a very good reason to worry. Which They are you talking about?" James asked.

"All of them. The people who take advantage of the good-hearted most successfully are the decievers and indoctrinators, who target the naive to spread their disease. If Cassie does not attain the wisdom to recognize and reject the poisonous influences when she spots them, then they'll turn her into a monster."

Ben turned to stare James dead in his eyes.

"The big boss and his army are gone, James. If you think our situation is bad now, it'll be nothing compared to an Animorph Lord who's been indoctrinated to betray us with every intention of doing the right thing in her heart!"

[2 Weeks & 5 Days before Jake, Rachel, and Cassie received the morphing power]

Morning

The forest was alive with the chatter of wildlife, Warlike peered out from the bushes, leering at the joggers from the top of the hill. They couldn't see him, but if they brought dogs, then the Antimorph knew he'd have an issue. He wouldn't have brought her this close to humans, especially now that she could no longer pass as one, but he had little choice.

((Warlike, what happened?)) Lotr asked as he finally met up with him. ((Wait, who's the Antimorph?))

((I'll explain later,)) Warlike said just as she begin to stir. ((Ah, good timing, she's waking up. Keep a lookout for humans, and stay out of sight, the last thing we want is to make her feel cornered.))

The Antimorph awoke, blinking her red eyes as she took a clawed hand to scratch her scalp, when she saw her talons, however...

"RRRRAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIII!" She screamed in panic at the sight of her mutated hand, she bolted up from the ground, trying to stand up. But her body was too changed, she had a heavy tail with a club on it, her spine and knees' shape was forever changed, and so she could only rear up on her hinds legs for a second and look down at her own furred and nude torso and armored belly before falling to all fours.

All throughout this display of panic and horror, Warlike watched closely, paying close attention to her amber eyes, hiding in the bushes just out of the clearing he had placed her in.

"Maa claughth!" The Antimorph tried to speak, but her only vocalizations were the garblings of an animal that knew how to speak English, but couldn't.

Prowler type, Warlike observed. This female is an ambusher, not a frontliner like myself, her high muscle mass combined with her low and squat body means she can outrun a horse, though no longer capable of her former level of endurance, her retention of the ability to sweat means she'll last longer than a wolf. Though not as agile, she can take more punishment, her body is protected by thick, armored skin on her belly, and most of her important and vulnerable arteries, while the rest of her nude skin is covered with a sandy brown fur.

The Aberration Controller knew what it was doing, Warlike reflected as he decided to step into the light to face the newly created Antimorph. He knows how these creatures act, they run on instinct, if he can gain the trust of the dominant animal side, then he can recover some semblance of her mind.

The female Antimorph spun her head to face Warlike as he emerged, his own naked body on full display in the light, he approached slowly, low to the ground, unarmed.

"SHaauIiIiIiIiIiIiiiii!"

She snarled in recognition, her whiskered snout curling back to reveal thick and long pointed teeth, her nose, now dark and wet, had changed its shape and now rose above the snout, its holes wide. Her cranium may have been roughly the same shape, but her tail was thick, and swished side to side anxiously, the bladed tip able to stab at a surprisingly long distance in a moment's notice.

Warlike, in response to her aggression, sat down.

((You!)) The female Antimorph accused. ((You did this! You poisoned me with your venom, stripped me naked once the transformation took hold!))

Warlike blinked in surprise, lips slightly parted in an expression of surprise.

((No, I did not do this to you,)) Warlike defended himself from the accusation. ((I have sworn to never use my venom on an Animorph ever again, and those urine soaked rags were destroyed by your transformation.))

At this point the Antimorph Veteran motioned with his head to the right, and the newly transformed's gaze followed to where her clothes, now a pile of tatters, were laid down.

((I didn't know you existed before entering that bar. I did so to take refuge, same as you.))

((If it wasn't you, then why am I THIS?!)) The female Antimorph demanded, snarling and beginning to approach Warlike with killing intent in her eyes, long bear-like talons digging into the foilage and earth underfoot.

"SHiiaaaa-!"

"SHOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUGH!" Warlike answered the threat with a growl of his own, his threat rumbling like a thunderstorm. Immediately the Female stopped her advance, eyes widening in recognition, before she lowered to the ground and bowed her head in submission, resting on top of her limbs like a cat. Her tail, however, raised at the base.

((How do you feel?)) Warlike asked. ((I'm astounded you retained enough brainpower to speak. You recover quickly.))

((My head feels...blurry,)) She confessed. ((But it's much clearer than before, that night was...pain...fear.))

((Do you feel your...wild self?)) Warlike asked. ((What does it want to do,? What do your instincts say?))

((I...it...wants you to mate with me...)) She admitted, mortified. ((The...second you growled...Do...you?))

((No, I can control it,)) Warlike said. ((Can you deny your animal self?))

((I...I don't know.))

((Just get out of that posture,)) Warlike said. ((If you can manage lowering the base of your tail, then you should be fine.))

Immediately, the Antimorph rose to her feet, her posture normal, as normal as it gets for a mutated creature like herself.

((Nobody injected you with Antimorph Venom, it was tainting the water in the human's pipes,)) Warlike explained. ((I am Warlike. Can you remember your name, or is it lost?))

((My name is Yetuklen,)) The Female Antimorph responded. ((Why would you think I forgot my name?))

Warlike froze, his orange eyes glaring at her with astonishment.

((Wait, how much do you remember?))

((I...I...)) Yetuklen trailed off as she recalled. ((I remember everything. Nothing's been lost, except for the last two weeks, which were blurry.))

((...Are, you an Animorph Lord?))

((No,)) Yetuklen confessed. ((And I'm definitely not one now.))

Warlike turned away, his orange eyes drowning in the thoughts behind his head, he placed his hand over his mouth in deep consideration. This was a huge paradigm shift.

((But what does that mean?)) Lotr asked. ((Does the Antimorph transformation somehow destroy the victim's memories?))

((It means that the metamorphosis on its own doesn't,)) Warlike realized, communicating in private thought-speech. ((Something else was inflicted upon me, alongside the mutation, that made me forget who I was...forever.))

((Not forever,)) Lotr said. ((Your creators didn't erase your memories, if they did, then how do you remember your knowledge of Pemalite Relics? Your memories weren't wiped, they were sealed.))

((But that would mean they only stopped halfway for me!)) Warlike pointed out. ((Why would they show me that mercy just for the sake of acquiring Pemalite relics? It was the suffering they were there to inflict!))

((You just answered your own question.))

((Hey, everyone?)) Yetuklen nervously answered. ((What do we do, now?))

((I have an offer for you,)) Warlike said. ((Join us. And we can take revenge on the ones responsible for doing this to you. There's some revenge killing that needs to be done, would your pride stand for me doing it in your stead?))

((No...I can't just go galloping around with an Antimorph...))

((And what are your other options? You're effectively dead to whatever community you have left, and if they knew your state, they would never rest until they captured you, restrained you, and leave you locked in a cage and diaper for the rest of your life, for fear of your instincts.))

((...You eat people. We eat people. Maybe I should let them!)

((So what you're saying is,)) Lotr interjected. ((You're going to let whoever's tainting the water supply continue to get away with this?))

((It's my only-) Yetuklen stopped her rant as she processed Lotr's words, all at once, a fire entered her eyes. ((On second thought, I'll take you the Clarjiatz up on it!))

((Excellent!)) Warlike said. ((As an Antimorph, you should be able to morph and demorph at the barest minimum once a week. It'll hurt,but do you have anything that flies long distances?))

((Kestrel,)) Yetuklen whispered, not realizing she had spoken it as her armored skin disappeared and her fur began to turn into feathers. ((Ah. Ah!))

Warlike called his decoy, and at once the white levitating thing decloaked for its master.

((Once you're done changing, hop into Lotr's arms. After we return to our base, we have much important work to do!))

Day 22, Midnight

It seemed to be everywhere and nowhere at once. The others had gone off ahead to get help, leaving me behind to run after them, I didn't morph, I could, but I knew I shouldn't. I had no intention of leaving him behind.

"Hang in there, Tom!" I whispered as I ran between the trees, those strange, deranged birds shrieking above. "I won't leave you!"

Those alien shrieking above me were not swooping down, they didn't have the courage to attack me, not while they didn't know where my team was. But that could change any shrieking, caterwauling sound behind me sounded off again, growing louder. They're closer, too close!

"No escape...No escape..." Tom whispered despondently, oblivious to the world around him.

"I'm going to get you out of here," I said to my brother.

"No escape...No escape..." Tom repeated just as we reached a cliff!

Oh no, oh no!

I skid to a stop, it was a colossal ravine with two cliffs on either side, on the bottom was water, a river flowing into the ocean.

"No escape...no escape..." Tom whispered again, I could feel his head rolling.

I looked around, swivelling my head for a few seconds until I saw it.

"Look!" I said, pointing to the air. "The Stratokite! My friends are here! You're going to be free! We won't let them take you from us again!"

"H..hhh," Tom said, his voice changing for the first time. "Hruthrin!"

The choked whisper of fear poured chills down my naked back. I looked to my brother and he was gone, in my arms wasn't Tom, but a giant reptilian alien, its humanoid body covered in blades. It had a long neck and beak that was slightly open and jittering, its red eyes were filled with terror, a mortal terror that I felt jump into my soul. Its arm was extending past me, finger pointing to whhere I was looking.

"Hruthrin!" Thealien said fearfully. "Beware Hruthrin! They take everything!"

((Jake! Run!)) I heard Tobias shout in my head.

((It's a trap!)) Cassie called out to me, I looked to my right and both of them were deeper inland, over the river. I looked to where I first saw the Stratokite and gasped, a bright blinding light, almost as bright as the sun, had replaced the Stratokite, its blue rays seemingly made everything turn dark as it lowered and lowered, I felt my face begin to burn-

"Ah!" I quietly exclaimed as I woke up in my bed. Throwing myself out of the sheets, I put a hand to my face.

Still there, not burnt, not peeling away down to the bone.

I looked around myself, and my night vision confirmed it, my room.I'm in my room.

I sighed in reliefe, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"That dream again," I whispered to myself in the dark. "What does it all mean?"

Tap! Tap! Tap!

I flinched at the noise before leaning forward to look out my windowsill. A Red Tailed Hawk was perched there.

((Tobias?))

((Yes, no need to let me in.))

((What's happening?)) I asked.

Tobias stared at me with his fierce angry raptor eyes for a good few seconds.

((Harry just reported in thoughtspeech. He found Them.))