Chapter 16
{What the hell was that?} Marco demanded as we flew back. {The Andalites are supposed to be coming to save us! And they kill each other because they care about their image? We're on our own. We can't trust anyone but ourselves.}
{I trust Ax,} Prince Jake said. {And Elfangor trusted us. Commander Galuit trusted us. Clearly some Andalites are worth trusting.}
{Galuit's probably the one who snitched on Ax's mom!} Marco snapped.
{We don't know anything for certain,} Prince Jake said.
{We know my mother was gunned down on her own lawn,} I spat.
{Ax, did you recognize the ship that landed in your scoop?} Prince Jake asked.
{No, my Prince,} I admitted. {But I honestly wasn't paying too much attention to it.}
{What are you thinking, Jake?} Marco asked.
{We don't know if that ship was actually the Andalite government,} said Prince Jake. {It could have been a rogue faction of Andalites.}
{A rogue faction of Andalites?} Marco echoed.
{We don't know anything for certain, and that's a fact. These Andalites could have been terrorists for all we know.} Prince Jake speculated.
{Andalite terrorists?} I mocked.
{Yeah, Jake, well I've got a fact for you,} Marco sneered. {I'm never going near another Andalite again, except Ax. They kill anyone who has PTSD, for crying out loud! And if Ax's mother is right, anyone who threatens the government's image gets killed off. Ax, what is the strictest law of your people?}
{Seerow's kindness,} I answered automatically.
{Exactly! We, the Animorphs, threaten their image! Because we're living proof their law is all junk! What do you think the Andalites will do to us next time we meet?}
I wanted to say the Andalites wouldn't kill my friends. I wanted to believe it was true. But after what I'd seen today, who knew?
{If the Andalites wanted us dead, they could have killed us on Leera,} Prince Jake argued.
{Maybe they just weren't done using us,} Marco shot back. {You heard Galuit yourself, they needed us! Which reminds me, I thought of this back then but didn't say anything at the time: why would the Andalites go to a watery planet without water morphs? How did they even get the bombs in place? Hell, they probably hoped we'd die when the bombs exploded! It was a miracle Ax wasn't killed!}
{Marco,} Prince Jake began. {We can't speculate…}
{Bullshit we can't!} Marco exploded in a fury of passion that I had never seen before in Marco. {Jake, you know what the Andalites did on the Hork-Bajir homeworld! You know! And remember Captain Samilin, the Andalite traitor? He shot dozens of his own men! And just today, four Andalites shot Ax's mother. She could be dead for all we know. So you can go on pretending it's not real. But I'm smart enough to look at the facts. I'm smart enough to extrapolate what the Andalites will do to us the moment we stop being useful as pawns.}
I wanted to tell Marco that the virus on the Hork-Bajir homeworld was one Andalite who acted alone, without orders. I wanted to tell Marco that he was wrong. But after today, I realized I couldn't be sure. I could see Marco's logic. And I couldn't see any flaws.
{I can see the others,} I said. {Everyone else is there, including Erek. It is currently 7:31, so we are 1 minute behind schedule.}
{Got it, thanks Ax,} Prince Jake said.
{You guys done up there?} Tobias called up, using the thought-speak that came with his human morph. {Erek says you can land right beside us, and he'll project a hologram around you while you demorph.}
{Roger, landing now,} said Marco. One at a time we dived down and came to a rest on the ground. Once we were on the ground, we began morphing.
{How was meeting the Hork-Bajir?} I asked, desperate to think of something other than my mother.
"It was fun," Hannah said with a smile. "The Hork-Bajir were so much more friendly than I imagined."
{You and Jordan both got Hork-Bajir morphs uneventfully, I assume?} Prince Jake asked.
"Yes," Jordan confirmed. "Now we're ready to go into the Yeerk pool."
Cassie shuddered. "I don't think I'll ever be ready to go down into the Yeerk pool."
"You can say that again," Rachel agreed. She turned to me and asked, "How was the talk with the Andalites?"
{Terrible,} I admitted. I told them everything as I finished demorphing and began morphing to human.
When I got to the part where my mother told me Escafil was a serial rapist, Cassie leaned over and threw up into some bushes.
"If you think that's bad, just wait until you hear this next part," Marco muttered.
I told them that my mother claimed the Andalite government killed anyone who had PTSD, as Marco put it.
Tobias turned and stared at something far away.
And then I described the ship landing in my family's scoop and my mother getting shot.
"Oh, that's horrible!" Rachel exclaimed.
Hannah's hands were clasped over her mouth in horror.
"Hey, I hate to interrupt your story," said Erek. "But we're going to miss the arrival of Visser Two."
"He's right," Prince Jake snapped into leader mode. "Let's get going."
We all walked into McDonalds under Erek's hologram.
I heard Erek order a happy meal with extra happy, the secret to entering the Yeerk pool. We walked around the back and into the walk-in fridge. We walked right in, and the Gleet Biofilter didn't make a sound.
We began walking down the long staircase.
Into the Yeerk pool.
The first thing we heard were the screams. Temporarily freed humans and Hork-Bajir were crammed in cages while their Yeerks fed on Kandrona rays. Some hosts screamed for help, or begged to be released. Others pleaded with the Hork-Bajir to be let loose, or just the mercy of a quick death.
Some others just sat still and cried.
But the worst ones were the ones who stared blankly into nothingness, their faces devoid of any emotion. These were the hosts who had completely given up hope.
We reached the bottom of the stairs.
I looked in a nearby cage and saw a young boy, perhaps five years old, embracing his mother. They were trying to make the most of the precious few minutes they had together, before once again being placed under Yeerk control. The boy had tears streaming down his face as his mother gently caressed his hair.
I looked away.
Erek led us to a dining area within the Yeerk pool, and we all sat down at a large table.
"I have made my hologram display a group of human controllers eating dinner," said Erek. "We will be able to sit here until Visser Two arrives."
We made small talk for a while, but nobody really got invested. Eventually we just decided to try and identify as many controllers as possible.
Jordan was sitting next to me. She leaned close and whispered, "Hey, Ax. I just want to say I'm sorry for everything you went through. I feel like it's all my fault, since I suggested the plan."
"It's not your fault, Jordan," I reassured her. "It's the Yeerks' fault. They started this war. Not us."
I tried to form my human lips into a smile. I succeeded. I think.
"You know, if you ever want to talk about it, I would be willing to talk, any time," Jordan said.
I was about to reply to Jordan, but Rachel interrupted us. "Hey, check it out, it's Chapman."
Chapman was the assistant principal of the school the Animorphs attended. He was also one of the highest ranking controllers we knew.
As we watched, Chapman walked down the first steel pier. A pair of Hork-Bajir helped him kneel down so the Yeerk could exit his head.
We watched the Yeerk plop out of Chapman's head and into the Yeerk pool.
And then Chapman calmly stood up and walked away from the pier.
Chapman was a voluntary host. Of course, he only agreed to become a voluntary host in exchange for the Yeerks promising to leave his daughter, Melissa, alone.
But he was voluntary nonetheless.
There is an area where the voluntary hosts go, where they sit on comfortable chairs, watch TV, and drink fancy beverages.
But Chapman did not go to that area.
As we watched, Chapman walked into the dining area where we were sitting, ordered a burger, and sat down at the table across the aisle from us.
"Hold on," said Marco. "The Yeerks just let voluntary hosts walk around the Yeerk pool? They don't have to stay in the lounge until their Yeerk is done feeding?"
"Of course," said Erek. "Freedom to roam around the Yeerk pool is helpful to keep the morale of voluntary hosts high. And, if the host had even a trace of a plan to escape, the Yeerk would just tell the Hork-Bajir guards before leaving the host body."
"Makes sense," Prince Jake nodded.
We watched Chapman take a few bites of his burger. Then he stopped eating, set his burger down, and took something out of his pocket.
"What does he have?" Tobias asked. "Man, I miss my hawk eyes."
Cassie was the closest. She squinted to see what was in Chapman's hand.
"It's a photograph," she announced. "Of Chapman, Mrs. Chapman, and Melissa."
"Oh, no," Hannah said. "Mrs. Chapman is on the convoy to the Hork-Bajir homeworld. They probably already left. Chapman must think he's never going to see his wife again."
"It's more than that," Marco said. "Melissa is probably never going to see her mom again. And Chapman was already never going to be able to say, 'I love you,' to his daughter ever again. But now it's even worse. Now that family is permanently split apart."
As we watched, Chapman began to cry. He buried his head in his hands and sobbed silently.
I looked around the table. Most of us had tears in our eyes, too.
Suddenly, a bell chimed throughout the Yeerk pool.
Chapman quickly wiped his eyes and stuffed the photograph back into his pocket.
All around us, controllers were throwing away their trash and heading out into the main area of the Yeerk pool.
"All right, everyone," Erek said. "Let's go meet Visser Two."
Still under Erek's hologram, we walked out near the Yeerk pool. The other hosts were forming up in neat rows and columns, sorted by species. Since Erek's hologram was of human controllers, we were near the front.
A ship flew in from the docking bay, where ships were stored and maintenance performed.
We had seen several Yeerk ships before, but nothing quite like this one. This ship was long and cylindrical, with bulges and protrusions seemingly randomly distributed throughout the ship. The ship was perhaps 100 feet long from front to back, and was entirely silver. Reflections of hosts cascaded off different parts of the ship.
Two large helicopter-like pieces of landing gear extended from the bottom of the ship. They were quite long, perhaps 85 feet long each. The landing gear was sort of segmented every five feet or so, and each piece appeared to be capable of moving up and down independently of the other pieces. I got the feeling that this ship would be easily able to land on uneven surfaces.
I couldn't see any windows or other openings into the ship. Of course, one way windows are easy to make for any species capable of space flight.
"Interesting ship," Marco commented.
Prince Jake looked at me. "Have you ever seen a ship like this before, Ax?"
"I have not," I admitted. "It looks quite advanced, as far as Yeerk vessels go."
The ship finally touched down.
A ramp appeared from the bottom of the ship with a hiss of compressed air being expelled.
About 10 Hork-Bajir moved to stand in two rows of five on either side of the ramp. Guards, I realized.
One of the Hork-Bajir yelled something, and all the hosts snapped to attention.
I took a quick look around. The Yeerk pool was almost completely still, the only things moving were the Hork-Bajir working on the never ending cycle of infestation.
And, of course, the hosts in cages never stopped their tormented cries and screams.
And then, he appeared.
I heard someone gasp. Maybe it was me. Maybe it was all of us.
Visser Two had a Hork-Bajir body. But it was no ordinary Hork-Bajir.
Most Hork-Bajir are a sort of green-brown color that allows them to blend in with the environment on their homeworld.
But this Hork-Bajir was a sort of metallic silvery color, as if it was made out of living steel.
He was about a foot taller than the average Hork-Bajir, and his blades had a blue tint to them. The blades were also much longer than the average Hork-Bajir. His wrist blades were curved more sharply and went up almost to his shoulders. His arms naturally twisted on the way down, so his elbow blades and wrist blades were offset by about 90 degrees. I realized that all of the blades had tiny barbs on them, designed specifically to cut through flesh.
The one thing smaller on Visser Two compared to normal Hork-Bajir was his tail. Most Hork-Bajir have a relatively long tail with a couple blades at the end, but Visser Two's tail was short and stubby, and didn't appear to have any blades.
The most unsettling thing was Visser Two's eyes. Most Hork-Bajir have either red or yellow eyes, but Visser Two's eyes were sort of a glowing, radioactive white.
White Phosphor, I thought to myself.
The pupils were two tiny, almost invisibly small pinpricks of magenta.
"What the hell is that host body?" Rachel demanded.
"I can only speculate," I said. "But I believe this is one of the Super Hork-Bajir that Quafijinivon created."
"I didn't expect them to look so different," Cassie said.
"Me neither," I admitted.
"Those wrist blades make him look like Spider man 2099," said Marco.
"Uh…who is that?" Hannah asked. I wondered the same thing.
"You don't know who Spider man 2099 is?!" Marco gasped. "He's the coolest variant of Spider man ever! He…"
"Quiet, everyone!" Prince Jake snapped. "Everyone pay attention. Observe every detail. This is an important moment. We need to remember everything. And I mean everything. His body language, speed, leadership style, the way the other Yeerks react, everything."
"If you like, I can record this event," Erek offered. "That way you can analyze it many times."
"That would be perfect, thanks. But that's no excuse to let ourselves get distracted," Prince Jake added with a glare at Marco.
And then Visser Two spoke. "Greetings, my fellow Yeerks."
Wow. How do I even describe his voice?
Every word sent chills down my spine.
Every. Single. Word.
Elegant but low at the same time. Subtle, but powerful.
Like slowly stepping on a perfectly crispy leaf. Or rubbing a glue stick on a microphone.
Perfect, but somehow simultaneously hideous.
"My name is Visser Two," he continued. I felt myself shudder involuntarily. "I am here to lead you all in the conquest of Earth. Previously, I was on the Hork-Bajir homeworld, as you can tell by my host body."
A murmur passed through the other controllers. Visser Two waved his hand nonchalantly and all the controllers relaxed.
"I know Visser Three had a reputation for killing his subordinates. Let me assure you, that will not happen under my command. As a leader, I will always welcome criticism. But never disrespect."
Visser Two smiled, and I noticed that inside his Hork-Bajir beak were human teeth.
"Okay, tell me that's not nightmare fuel," Jordan said.
"Why would the Super Hork-Bajir have human teeth?" Rachel wondered.
It was Tobias who answered. "More versatile diet. Normal Hork-Bajir can only eat tree bark, which is hard to find on many planets. These Super Hork-Bajir are probably omnivorous, capable of surviving off many different kinds of foods."
I nodded. "Impressive deduction," I complimented.
Then Visser Two continued, his voice still sending shivers down my back. "I have done a lot of research on Earth in preparation for arriving here. I pride myself in knowing everything there is to know about my opponents. Knowledge is power. Visser Three wanted open warfare. But there are simply too many humans for open warfare to be successful."
I felt another chill go down my spine. As if something terrible was about to happen.
"Visser Three has allowed a small band of Andalites to delay his plans. But I have devised a plan that will make the Andalite Bandits irrelevant."
"Visser…if I may…" a timid voice spoke up. I turned. It was a human controller I didn't know.
If a controller had interrupted Visser Three, they would've been killed. But Visser Two was a different type of beast.
Visser Two nodded. "Go ahead."
"The so-called Andalite bandits contain at least some humans. Visser Three has deliberately concealed this fact in order to protect his reputation."
"Really?" Visser Two sounded shocked.
"It's true," another voice spoke up. "I have seen humans morphing."
"Well then. We will find these humans," Visser Two pledged. "And we will make them ours."
I turned to look at my friends.
They all seemed to be in shock.
Jordan had a look of guilt plastered over her face.
We had killed Visser Three.
But he had been replaced by someone even worse.
I made eye contact with Prince Jake.
And he said the thing that was on all of our heads.
"What have we done?"