Tellion reluctantly stepped out of the shower and grabbed a nearby towel. The warm water had felt so amazing, refreshing in both body and mind. It was like washing away the filth that had caked all over her body from her ordeal from earlier had helped to cleanse her spirit. As she dried herself off, she took great care to avoid the part of her head that she had cut at the construction site. It wasn't bleeding anymore, thankfully, but it still hurt a great deal, and she still had no idea how she was going to be able to explain to Mark how she had gotten such a wound. Him being a doctor, she was certain that he would want to thoroughly inspect the injury. Tellion just hoped that he wouldn't think it so bad that she needed to be taken to a hospital again, and that he would accept whatever lie she could concoct to explain such a wound.
Taking some disposable bits of paper, Tellion covered the wound as she dried her hair off before wrapping the towel around her head. Throwing on a bathrobe before exiting the bathroom, Tellion walked over the bed and wearily laid down on it.
Staring up at the ceiling, she pondered how she had gotten to this point in her day. She had only intended to secretly go pay her final respects to Susan, and instead had found herself entrapped in a strange and dangerous situation that caused her to prevent two controllers from getting their hands on some kind of glowing blue cube that belonged to the Andalites. And then somehow, after everything she had gone through, Tellion still managed to lose that cube to a human child. And she didn't have the first clue about how she would even go about tracking him down and retrieving the cube. Her only choice was to wait until Mr. King or Erik met with her again and explain to them what had happened. With any luck, they would know better than her of what it might be and have an even better chance of tracking the kid down and getting the cube from him. As she lay there, thinking of everything, her eyes almost instinctively went back to the hand that had grasped the cube.
She didn't feel the tingling in her body anymore, but yet she could almost swear that she could still sense it there, lurking underneath her skin. There was still no rational explanation that she could come up with for what had happened to her when she had touched the cube. She couldn't explain why the light of the cube had seemingly faded away from her touching it, or why it felt to her like the glow had somehow been absorbed within her.
Tellion had thought about that experience for the last few hours. She didn't feel anything different in Susan's body, at least physically. But mentally, some sort of unexplainable instinct within her told Tellion that something was different about her now. Yet, she just couldn't figure out what it was that had changed within her.
Feeling so lost and totally confused, Tellion grasped a nearby pillow and covered her face as she screamed at the top of her lungs.
Once she had poured forth her pent up anger, Tellion threw the pillow on the floor and sat up. Not knowing what to do, Tellion went down to the kitchen and made herself a sandwich. As she took her first bite, sounds of distress came from the back yard. Putting her food down, Tellion glanced out the blinds to see what the commotion was. What she saw sent a tingle running down her spine.
Out in the back yard, near the bird feeder Mark had insisted that she had wanted so much in her (Susan's) former life, Tellion saw a black bird thrashing around on the ground near its round base. One of the small creature's wings was wrapped up around something, while its other flapped about wildly as the bird tried futilely to free itself.
Tellion only needed a moment to see the small animal in distress before her instincts to protect something so tiny and helpless kicked in. She hurried into the living room, slipping on a pair of skintight socks and putting on slippers that she used to walk around the house. Not bothering to switch out of her robe, Tellion made sure the knot at her waist that held it closed was good and tight before stepping out into the back yard.
The day was a typical boring afternoon. But the weather was the last thing upon her mind. She hurried over to where the bird continued to hope and flay about in distress.
It was something that she dreaded to witness. The poor creature, she didn't know how such a thing had happened, had its right wing was completely ensnared in a thin, wire like substance. Tellion cautiously approached the thrashing creature, feeling a great pity coming over her as she watched the smaller being in a clear state of great distress. Sensing its plight, Tellion reached down and scooped up the distressed animal. The creature, clearly overwhelmed with everything that was happening to it, lashed out wildly at her. As Tellion tried to hold the animal in her hands, its frantic state caused the small creature to thrash about in her shaking hands. It lashed out with claw and beak, tearing at her thin skin of her hands.
Tellion winced as the small creature tore into her vulnerable flesh, drawing blood.
Dammit! Tellion thought. Can't you realize that I'm trying to help you, you dumb little bird?
As the black bird continued to thrash around in her grip, Tellion had a strange thought shoot through her mind. She didn't know where it came from, nor did she question the rationale behind unexplainable thought.
Tellion gently grasped the distressed bird in her hands, took a deep breath, and focused her mind. She thought of the bird, of what it was, of how its black feathers shinned in the sunlight and its eyes darted about curiously. She thought of everything that the bird could potentially be to her. Her hands gently held the bird even as it continued to thrash in her grasp. Her thoughts became a singular track that encompassed all of what she was to the bird as well. And how they could become…
Quite unexpectedly, the familiar tingle that Tellion remembered running through her body when she had touched the cube earlier returned. And like it had done with the cube, the tingling started at the edge of her finger tips, the sensations coming from the very place that her soft flesh pressed against the shimmering black feathered body of the bird. And from her tingling touch, the bird itself slowly ceased its distressed thrashing in her grasp. Held carefully in her hands, the bird became unnaturally calm. It was as if somehow, Tellion and the bird itself were becoming one.
Looking down at the flying creature she cradled protectively, Tellion took a moment to stare into its black beady eyes, and the way they seemed to glance back at her. It was as if the animal itself felt the connection that had unexplainably formed between them. The calmness that had overcome the bird, the tingling connection that she felt for it cradled protectively in her grasp, it helped to bring a much desired warmth to Tellion. Her equally warm smile to the creature only helped to solidify the link between them in that moment.
"It's ok little one." Tellion said assuringly to the bird as she started to work to remove the wire that entangled its wing. "I'll take care of you."
True to her word, Tellion moved slowly and carefully to not startle the bird. Soon she had removed the wire from around the bird's wing. It was free once again. With one final caress of her other hand across its smooth feathers, Tellion gently released the creature onto the ground and stepped back. For a few seconds, the bird remained as still as when she had been touching it. Then, to her surprise, it came to life as if waking from a dream. Flapping its wings, the bird looked once at her before taking to the sky. Tellion watched the bird climb higher and higher into the blue until it had vanished from sight. Tellion took a moment to inspect the small scratches and pecks that that had been inflicted upon her, they hurt a bit, but they were injuries that Tellion gladly accepted in return for knowing that she had saved that small creature. Tellion clenched her fists several times, as she felt the tingle in them fade before returning to the house.
Back inside, after she had cleaned up her injuries and put a few small band aids over her cuts, Tellion's curiosity got the better of her and she did a quick search on the archaic home computer to see what type of bird it was she had just saved was. It only took her a few minutes of searching to learn that it was just a simple common crow. Nothing particularly amazing about the animal that made it stand out from most other birds. And yet, for reasons that Tellion couldn't explain, as she sat in front of that computer staring at the image of a crow, her mind drifted back to the moment that she had taken it up in her hands.
The feel of its feathers against her skin, the same tingling sensation from when she had touched that Andalite cube, but above all else the unexplainable connection that she felt had formed between her and that crow. It was…as if somehow they had become one in that strange short period of time. Tellion remained motionless in her chair as she continued to stare at the image of the crow on the screen. She couldn't pull her eyes off of it. All she could do was let her thoughts become captivated by it. Of how its form was so sleek and elegant. Of how its feathers shined in the right kind of light. But above all, the true freedom of flight it must have felt gliding through the air. She thought so hard about the creature that, Tellion didn't truly realize it at first, that her thoughts had shifted away from desiring to admire the creature, transforming into a deeply held desire to…become it.
She envisioned herself as the crow. Its shiny wings becoming her own, its sleek body replacing hers. But above all, the desire to take to the sky and know true freedom.
Tellion let herself become so immersed in those thoughts that she was barely aware that the tingling sensation had returned, and was now coursing through her whole body was now. And even as she became aware of this, something else far more bizarre began happening to her. She felt her body beginning to shift in the chair, although she was certain that she wasn't truly moving. Odd sounds began to fill her hearing, but oddly enough, they were not coming from around her. They were coming…from within her own body. Her skin began to tighten and the noises of bones within her began to crackle and pop. Along with this, everything around Tellion suddenly seemed to be getting bigger.
Tellion didn't know why, but none of this concerned her. Her mind was barely aware of what was happening to her. All of her thoughts were focused on the image of the crow, now fully enthralling her mind.
She was so mesmerized by the image of the crow in her thoughts that Tellion only truly became aware of what was happening to her when her vision changed. Her plain field of vision that she was so used to as a human shifted, becoming slightly narrower. She was able to focus her vision onto the minute details of a single syllable on the glowing screen, her eyesight becoming more cone oriented, just like the kind she had witnessed when using Ellaine's binoculars when they had gone camping. But it wasn't truly tunnel like as it had been with Tallaxia's six rotating eyes. No, here it still remained wide enough for her to see around her, but everything in her direct eye sight became incredibly focused.
As this new way of seeing drew her attention, the computer screen disappeared from her sight as she suddenly found herself falling down below the desktop.
No. That wasn't right. Tellion wasn't falling. She would have hit the ground long before becoming aware of this shift. Everything around her was getting bigger. Much bigger. Or…
…she was shrinking.
Tellion attempted to flail her arms in a desperate attempt to grab onto something before she lost her balance and fell to the floor. Only when she flailed her limbs, Tellion was shocked to see that they were no longer arms. They were wings. Shiny, black feather covered wings.
What's happening to me! Tellion screamed.
Yet her voice didn't come out as she had always known. Instead her shocked cry echoed throughout the room as a high pitched cackling sound. Exactly the way of the noise the crow had made when she had been picking it up.
Then the robe she had been wearing fell over her, completely enveloping her. Feeling the weight of the material pressing down on her, Tellion wildly flailed about to break free of its grip. Off the chair she finally fell, hitting the floor with only the faintest thud. She hardly felt the impact of the fall. It was as if she suddenly had no weight in her body, yet it still momentarily stunned her. Tellion took a moment to bring her confusion and shock under control.
Breathe.
She told herself as she tried to reign in the madness of what was happing to her. A madness that she had absolutely no idea if any of it was truly real.
Breathe.
Tellion said again.
But even breathing wasn't the same. She didn't feel the air around her sucking up through her nostrils. Because she didn't have nostrils anymore, at least not like the kind when she had been human. Terrified of what was happening to her, Tellion weakly tried to pull herself out from under the robe. Yet she hand no hands anymore to grasp at anything, and her legs felt so small and feeble. Despite this, she was still able to somehow get herself out from under the weight of the garment. Once freed from the fabric, Tellion took a moment to glance at her surroundings. Everything, absolutely everything, that surrounded her was now suddenly much larger than she had remembered it being.
What's going on? Tellion said.
Only now her voice didn't come forth from her now elongated mouth. It was as if her thoughts were being projected out into the space surrounding her. Again, she tried to move her arms, and again, when she twisted her head to look at them, she realized with complete bewilderment that she no longer had arms. They were in fact wings. Wings coated with thick, shiny black feathers. She hadn't been hallucinating. Her arms were wings.
As she tried to make sense of this, Tellion felt a sudden urge in the recess of her mind to get off the ground.
It's not safe down here. I'm vulnerable. Got to get off the ground. Got to get higher. Got to get higher!
That was a silly thing to consider, Tellion thought. She was so small, she had no arms, not even hands to use to climb up. What could she do? How could she possibly get higher?
No sooner than that thought passed through her mind, Tellion felt an unexplainable urge to flap her arm/wings. Unable to make sense of anything happening to her, she had no ability to fight it, and with one mighty flap of her now completely misshapen appendages, Tellion took off from the ground. The sudden rush of gravity no longer holding its sway over her, and her lifting through the air, was one of the most shocking and exhilarating experiences of her crazy and short life. She was so enthralled in the moment with the experience of soaring up and up that she almost crashed into the spinning fan just above her. At the last moment, she came to her senses and adjusted her wings in a certain way through no real thought of her own, veering sharply away from the dreaded spinning blades. Her path took her towards the window. A part of her brain, one that had suddenly appeared with this unexpected change, screamed to fly through the opening and escape out into the wider world.
Tellion desperately struggled with this new part of her mind, fighting with all of her mental might to reign it in with only a precious few seconds before she crashed head first into the clear glass surface.
No! she screamed. I'll die!
It was this terrified cry that gave her the moment of clarity to shift her wings yet again and veer away from almost certain death. Sharply pulling away from the window, Tellion darted her head about in a feeble attempt to find a place to put herself down and get a chance to collect herself. She spotted the small bit of furniture in the adjacent room, its surface was clear of anything. A perfect place to set down. Tellion focused all of her jumbled thoughts on getting to that place. She glided through the massive opening between the living and formal dining room, almost crashing on the surface of that piece of furniture. Once her feet, now three clawed toes, were firmly rested upon the wooden surface, Tellion took a moment to collect herself.
What just happened? She asked herself, again hearing her voice projecting out from her mind into what felt like the surrounding space. What's happened to me?
As if to answer her own question, Tellion suddenly realized that she had landed in front of a small mirror that had been placed just above the piece of furniture on the wall. Curiosity overcoming her, Tellion made a small jump to allow herself to look fully at herself in the mirror. What she saw left her both perplexed, bewildered, horrified, and in complete disbelief. Sitting in front of that mirror was no longer herself in Susan's body as she had always seen. Instead, Tellion saw herself staring at an exact image of the crow that she had just rescued from the back yard.
What the…Tellion cried, thrashing her arms/wings about. This had to be some kind of trick. Some kind of illusion brought on her mind from the fatigue of the day. But with each movement she made copied exactly by the reflection before her, Tellion realized that it wasn't. This image, the crow that stared at her through that reflective surface, it was…her. She wasn't in her human body anymore. Somehow, without any way to explain it, Tellion had become that crow.
How…how is this possible?
Think a little bit on it Tellion. You the answer should be fairly obvious to you. Cackled the dark and sinister voice of Crayak from all around her.
Tellion shuddered at the sound of his voice, her feathers ruffling. You…you…
Is that all you have to say to me after us being apart for so long? You didn't really think that I was finished with you after our little, disagreement, did you Tellion?
You monster! Tellion spat. I don't ever want to see or speak to you! You pretended to be Susan! You tried to get me to murder Visser Three with a promise that you would help me bring her back. You made me believe that she was still alive!
I never truly lied to you about that, my dear Tellion. What I told you, that I would help you find Susan, was all true. It was you that failed to ask if she was truly alive, you only sought to find her. Well now you know, she's no longer anywhere. And did your friend the Ellimist not bring you to a place and time of which you were able to reach her? So you could say that I did indeed bring you Susan, looking at it from a certain point of view.
You lie even now! Tellion spat in her mental voice. You promised to help me save her. She was never in my reach to save!
Is she not truly saved? Does Mark, Ellaine, Linda, and Walter not view that they have their precious Susan back? Lies and truth are not so black and white, good and evil, as you would like to believe that they are, my dear Tellion. It's all a matter of perspective. And from my perspective, I always tell the truth. Even when I lie.
Shut up! Stop playing with my mind! What the hell do you want from me!? Tellion shrieked, darting her head about wildly in a vain attempt to see where Crayak was speaking from. Pointless, she already knew. Crayak, like the Ellimist, was everywhere and nowhere at the same time.
I don't want anything from you Tellion, at least not yet. No, today I'm simply here to inform you of something wonderful. At the behest of my opponent of course.
There's nothing you'll say that I'll believe! Tellion counter.
Oh trust me, my precious Tellion, you WILL want to believe this. Because my words will have actions to back them up. Your newfound, 'abilities', will possibly be a deciding factor in our galactic game in this part of the universe, in this portion of time. And your dear 'friend' the Ellimist and I have come to an understanding when we witness this new path you have chosen for yourself. I have to admit, I was hoping that you wouldn't do that. This does complicate my immediate plans, but I shall try to make the best of the situation.
Tellion simply growled as a response to Crayak. His reply, as it always seemed, was an amusing chuckle.
I have come to you on behalf of your dear 'friend', to give you a stern warning about your newly acquired powers.
Tellion remained silent. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of any kind of answer. It didn't seem to matter, because as always, just like the Ellimist, Crayak could somehow read the very feelings that were coursing through her new body.
This is a very serious warning to you Tellion. The new form you possess, and any other that you manage to obtain in the future, are never to be used for more than two Earth hours.
Why? She blurted out, wishing instantly that she hadn't spoken at all. The answer she got, while totally feeling distrustful of Crayak, couldn't be ignored.
You shall remain that way…permanently.
A sharp spike of fear struck Tellion. She didn't want to believe Crayak. He was deception and deceit incarnate. Yet, there was a stern warning within her that just couldn't brush aside his words.
You know I speak the truth. Even if your spirit chooses to not believe it, your mind knows it is true. You cannot expect to gain power without their being a price to be paid for such strength. But…
But what? Tellion asked hesitantly.
It is as I already told you, we have come to an agreement. The Ellimist and I have found a compromise on what to do with you. You see Tellion, the Andalites have a way to keep track of their allotted time limit while in each of their altered forms so they don't become stuck in them permanently. And seeing as how we wouldn't want such a silly fate to befall you, my precious Tellion, not after everything that you've been through…the Ellimist and I will grant upon you something similar to Andalites' ability. Now you too will be able to keep an internal track of how much time you will have remaining in each of your altered forms.
I told you once before, Tellion cried. I don't want anything from you!
This not a matter of choice for you, Tellion. You made certain of that when you chose to travel down the path you are currently on. And this gift is not just from me. It is from both myself and the Ellimist. If you don't believe me, ask him the next time he speaks to you.
She didn't want to believe him. Oh how desperately she didn't want to believe anything that he said to her. But Tellion couldn't deny that she felt no reason to doubt what she was hearing from Crayak.
How? Tellion demanded. How would I even know how to do this?
You won't have to do anything, Tellion, your body and mind will tell you instinctively. I have a strong suspicion that you'll find out before too long exactly what that will entail. Crayak mocked. The point is, from this moment forth, you will be able to track your time limit, just similar to the Andalites, in this and whatever form you choose to take in the future.
Whatever form I choose…but how did this even happen? Tellion demanded an answer from him. How did I get this Andalite ability to alter my form? How is any of this even possible?
You pride yourself on being a smart Yeerk, or Yoort. Whatever you want to call yourself now. Crayak spat. Always focused on the present, always dreadful to look to the past. Why don't you utilize some of that prized Yeerk intelligence and figure it out for yourself. But I strongly suggest that you don't take too long. Eventually, you'll see firsthand the agreement that the Ellimist and I have come to.
But how do I turn back? I don't know how I even got this way. Tellion hated to hear herself plead to Crayak.
Have you really become so helpless now? I could tell you how to do that, it would be very easy for me. But it'll come at a price…
No! Tellion projected her mental voice at him. I don't want anything else from you! Not now, not ever!
Well then, your feistiness is both admirable and amusing, but it may prove to be your ultimate undoing. You're the Prime Yeerk Tellion, I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out for yourself. But don't take too long…
With a final echoing laugh that slowly faded from existence itself, Crayak's voice vanished from all of Tellion's known senses. For once, she was actually not grateful for him to be leaving her. She still had so many questions, so many things about what had just happened to her to try and figure out, that she wanted Crayak answer. Then she remembered everything that he had done to her, and tried to make her do, and her missing him instantly vanished.
Tellion looked back at the image of herself. The black feathered crow with equally black eyes. It was still almost impossible for her to believe that she was really looking at herself. She gently tapped her hardened beak into the reflective surface of the mirror, and felt its impact against her face. No, this wasn't some kind of bizzare dream. This was all real. She had…morphed.
Yes. Morphed.
It seemed so unreal to her, yet it was without a doubt reality. She had changed, just like the Andalites could. But how did she get…
Never more than two Earth hours in each form.
Hearing Crayak's warning repeat through her mind, Tellion suddenly had a strong desire to no longer remain in this crow body.
Turn back. Turn back! TURN BACK ! Tellion screamed in her mind. Yet nothing happened. Panic began to overtake her as she suddenly realized that she didn't have the first idea on how to turn herself back to Susan. In desperation, she flapped her wings and took to the air. She flew about wildly in the room for several moments before the calmer, more rational portion of her mind overcame her frantic state. Landing on the wooden floor, Tellion called upon all of her remaining mental strength to push down the instincts of the animal portion of her mind trying to take over.
Flapping her wings several times, Tellion took a shallow breath in and released a calming exhale. Ok, she had to just take a moment and think about this. How had she become this way? Not just in the form of a question, but really think about how she had transformed into this crow. She had been sitting in front of the primitive human computer, looking at the crow, thinking about it. And wanting to somehow become it. Then it struck Tellion. If thinking about and wanting to become the crow had transformed her this way, then maybe if she thought about and wanting to become Susan, then she could turn back.
This had to work, because Tellion just didn't have any other way of knowing how to return to her human self. She thought about how she had looked as Susan. Her body shape, her unique features, but above all, her gentle and caring face that had become a physical manifestation of Tellion's own self. Her entire thought process focused on those key details of her host. And as she let herself become immersed in those images, Tellion felt the tingling sensation begin run through her small frame.
Then everything began to change once again. The strange stretching, crackling and popping sounds returned, and she found herself quickly getting larger. Her cone like vision began to return to the familiar sight of that of a human. Her arms and legs stretched out, the feathers receding and fading into her quickly lightening skin as tiny finger began pushing up through the layers of shrinking feathers. The beak protruding from her face receded. The other changes came faster than she could fathom. And before Tellion's mind could truly grasp what was happening, she found herself kneeling on the hard wood floor, back to her human self. And completely devoid of any clothing, except for the thin socks she had put on.
Although alone, Tellion felt immense embarrassment at being in her home almost completely naked. But, she was human again. Not knowing if she had truly turned back to herself, Tellion rushed over to the mirror and gazed at herself. The relief that overcame her was nearly impossible to comprehend. There she was, her completely human self. Exactly as she remembered herself being. Except…
Tellion leaned closer, Tellion saw that that large gash that had been across the top of her head was gone. It was like she had never been injured earlier in the day. Quickly inspecting her arms and hands, she saw that the many little scraps and cuts she had gotten throughout the day were gone as well. She was completely healed.
Tellion turned away from the mirror, her mind a confused mess as she tried to process all of this. Her wounds were gone. Was that due to the morphing? Maybe. She didn't have any other explanation. Then there was the skin tight socks she had been wearing. They had somehow shifted with her when she had transformed into the crow where the robe she had been wearing also had fallen off of her. Again, Tellion had no idea how that had happened.
Tellion immediately set her Yeerk mind to work to try and contemplate how this strange set of circumstances had happened. Maybe that tingling feeling that she felt going through her body when she had first morphed was some kind of bio electric field that covered her body to help induce the morph, so anything under the field, such as a thin piece of garment that was almost indistinguishable from the wearer's skin, would have shifted with her body. But it was just a wild guess. Tellion was an engineer, not a scientist or biologist. She didn't have the first real idea of how any of this whole process worked. Or for that matter, how she, being a completely separate entity existing inside her host body, had shifted with the body alteration. True, she was an invertebrate creature, but she still possessed a certain amount of mass, and surely that mass couldn't have existed inside the small cranial cavity of the crow. Did that mean that she could morph outside of Susan's body? She didn't know. Perhaps she would have to experiment the next time she had to leave Susan's body to feed. The only thing that she knew for certain was that she wasn't comfortable just standing there in the dining room completely naked.
Hurrying out into living room, Tellion grabbed the robe and threw it around herself. She then sat down on the couch and tried to calm her jumbled thoughts into a coherent sense of everything that had just happened to her.
Morphing power, the same that the Andalites possessed, now it was hers. And by the generosity of the Ellimist and, Tellion shuddered, Crayak, she could also now somehow keep track of the time limit like them. But it wouldn't, couldn't be exactly as theirs. The rational part of her mind knew that she should have felt relief at that prospect, but the other part of her, that part that she felt bound her more to the human existence than that of a Yeerk, screamed immense warnings of what that ability would actually be. Any agreement between the Ellimist and Crayak, would not have come about without some form of benefit to Crayak. Tellion couldn't possibly imagine what it was that such a horrific being would have to grant her such an ability without there being some kind sinister advantage to him. But worst of all, she had no idea how to utilize it. She was barely even sure how she had managed to transform into the crow and back again, or much less how she had made such a thing possible.
As she pondered the how, Tellion remembered when she had grabbed the bird. She hadn't really been thinking beyond trying to calm it down so she could free it. But something happened to the two of them when she had been holding the small animal. That tingling feeling that had swelled up from her fingers touching against its feathery frame.
That was it. Tellion thought. The tingling. It must have been whatever the process was that the Andalites used to become other things. Damn she wished her superiors had taught her more about this ability beyond warning that Andalites could make themselves look like anyone or any living thing, so that she would always keep her attention focused on odd behavior among her fellow controllers. So if they could turn themselves into any living thing, how did that happen?
The touch.
Tellion thought of how she had touched the crow, and how it had strangely became calm as the tingling had coursed through her. Somehow, with a combination of her touch and the tingling sensation, she had absorbed the little bird's essence, its genetically binding blueprint, it's…DNA, and merged it with her own.
But the greatest question to Tellion was the how. How did any of this happen to her? Crayak had said that she should be able to figure it out, that she was too focused on the present and not the past. And just as she was trying to ponder what his mocking words had meant about dreading the past, the full realization of the situation struck Tellion. The air hissed from her lungs as the complete dread overcame her.
That strange glowing cube. The one she had found in the bottom of that pit. The one that she had touched…
…it was an Andalite device that granted those that touched it the power to morph.
It was an object that by itself held more power than ten pool ships combined. It would grant the Empire legions of morph capable controllers. If Yeerks were ever to get their hands on such a device…that would be the end of the war. The end of the Andalites. The end of all free living beings.
And now a young child held that weapon of galactic importance. Tellion began to tremble. No, he had no idea what it truly was that he possessed. Nor the danger that he had unexpected put himself, and all of humanity, in.
Tellion leapt to her feet, both her body and mind infused with a sudden sense of immense purpose, and great responsibility. She had to find that boy. She had to get that Andalite cube back from him. But first she had to find him. Tellion set her Yeerk mind to work to contemplate what her next course of action should be. Her first action was to locate him, and trace him back to where he lived. That was the most probable action that Tellion could think of that would bring her back to the Andalite cube. But the only place that Tellion had to start from was where they had crossed paths in that old construction site, now to her Elfangor and Susan's unexpected gravesite. Even as she thought of this, the doubts began to formulate in her mind.
What were the chances that the boy lived anywhere near that place? Or that he would even come back anywhere near there any time soon? Plus, the sheer distance between that location and her house, it would take Tellion so much time just to get there. She couldn't risk driving the car over there, and the public transportation system took so long…
Tellion stopped right in the middle of her climb up the stairs. She was an idiot. Here she was thinking of her only option of getting around was as she currently was in Susan's body. The crow, despite not being a particularly impressive creature, could fly. And she had its essence within her, so now simply flying through the air was an option that was opened to her. With such an ability gifted to her, getting to that old construction site shouldn't take too long now. It would just be a matter of her retracing her paths that led to it. An easy task for her photographic mind.
Tellion climbed the rest of the stairs with a renewed vigor. There was still one more problem that she needed to address. Changing into the crow again would mean having to discard her clothing, and she doubted that tracking down this boy would take her less than the two hour time limit that Crayak had warned her about. Part of her really didn't want to believe any of that twisted being's words, but his arrogant and condescending way he had spoken to her forced Tellion to accept that this time the truth inflicted far more pain upon her than any lie he could bother to concoct. So with only two hours maximum allotted to her to be in each form, Tellion would most certainly have to transform back to Susan's body out in the world. Tellion didn't find her chances of turning back into Susan completely without clothing and not being noticed favorable. Such an incident would not end well for her. But she did have one other option…
Tellion returned to her bedroom and rummaged through one of the dresser drawers. After tossing aside several bits of clothing, she finally found it. The swimsuit that Mark had given her to use when in the deprivation tank. Most of the time she simply got in the tank naked when no one was around and she needed to feed off the Kandrona Rays, but every now and then she would get in it with just plain water to keep up the illusion to everyone that she needed the device. Throwing her robe onto the bed, Tellion quickly put on the swimsuit. Once she had it firmly fitting around her small human frame, Tellion inspected the garment. Its material appeared to be similar to the thin skin tight socks she still wore. Tellion wasn't entirely certain that this would work, but the swimsuit was the only option Tellion had which didn't involve her exposing her naked body to the entire world.
Opening the window to the bedroom, Tellion checked the clock near the bed. At least four more hours before Mark would even likely be home. The window of time presented to her was smaller than what Tellion would have liked, but she also didn't have time to squander by trying to be safe with her options, it likely wouldn't take long before that child unknowingly made the Imperial forces aware of just exactly what it was that he had in his possesion. If nothing else, she needed to pinpoint a place of which to begin her search of that boy.
Tellion took a deep breath of the fresh air as she stared out the window at the welcoming blue sky. A sky of which very soon she would, unbelievably, be flying through in just a short time.
Still not entirely sure of how she had done it the first time, Tellion looked through her memories and thought of the bird. Of how it had looked and felt in her hands, of how it had felt to be that creature. And just as before, the tingling sensation began to formulate within her body. And before long, Tellion felt her body twisting and changing into the crow again.
Remember Tellion, never more than two earth hours. But you'll be able to keep track of the time limit now, just like the Andalites.
Despite his proclamation of such an ability being a gift bestowed upon her by both him and the Ellimist, Tellion was well within her rights to be wary of anything that came from Crayak. And if what he said was true, Tellion hoped that the Ellimist had only come to such an agreement because he had faith in her. If and when the Ellimist spoke to her again, she would have to demand from him why he had agreed with Crayak over this.
But such thoughts were of no use to her in this moment. Before she realized it, Tellion was the crow once again. She wasn't sure how fast that had happened, but it did seem to be rather quick, maybe even quicker than the first time. With a flap of her wings, Tellion hopped onto the window frame's edge and looked back at the floor. The swimsuit wasn't lying discarded on the floor as she had feared it would. So it must have shifted with her transformation. At least, she hoped that it had. With an unexpected squawk, Tellion propelled herself off of the window's edge, and flew out into the greater world, her mind entirely set on tracking down that boy and retrieving the Andalite morphing cube from him.
No matter the cost.