Animorphs #55: The Prologue

Chapter 18

It wasn't hard to get to the valley. Not anymore, at least. In the early days, the few free Hork-Bajir lived there. The Ellimist put some sort of...magic spell over the place so that, even knowing where it was, you couldn't find it easily.

That spell was gone now. Maybe it was because the Hork-Bajir no longer needed to hide. Maybe the Ellimist didn't care anymore. Maybe it had something to do with Crayak or the One. I didn't know and I didn't really care.

The valley opened before me. I had called it home for a short time. The Yeerks had figured out who we were so we fled there with our families. Not everyone made it, but those of us who did lived there with the free Hork-Bajir.

Now Cassie was trying to make it home to Kafit birds, a species of animal native to the Andalite homeworld. I had to agree with her mother. It was a terrible idea. But that was Cassie for you. There was a place for every creature.

I saw her long before she saw me. She was with some guy. Roger or Rupert or something if I remembered right. He was her boyfriend and partner in ecology.

I buzzed low over their heads. ((Hey, Cassie,)) I called. ((Something very important to tell you.))

She looked up. "Tobias? You're back! Where's Jake?" She shot a look at Ruben. She and Jake used to have a thing going but it fell apart near the end of the war.

Cassie was short and black, with short black hair. She was wearing her standard workboots and jeans that didn't quite fit her. She had also brought climbing gear and a heavy backpack. I guess she hadn't flown here.

Cassie was always the nicest person I knew. She always knew how to stop a fight without hurting anyone. The war was terrible on her. She was a pacifist by design, but she was forced to kill every day. I respect her all the more for it.

((Jake and Marco are busy with something else. There's something important I need to tell you,)) I said again. I told her in closed thought-speak. I didn't want Rodney to hear. I landed on a tree branch near her head before I continued.

((The Yeerks may be coming back. It's a long story so I'm only going to tell the short version. The Yeerks now...worship...a being called the One. The One was the thing that drove Crayak out of his own galaxy and into ours. Now the One controls Ax.))

Cassie tried to stay calm, but I could see the sweat that broke out on her head. I could see the twitch of her face when I mentioned the Yeerks. At least she didn't scream or cry.

((There's more. We have reason to believe that the One is bringing the Yeerks back here to try for a second invasion. It's part of a plan to finish off Crayak. Jake and Marco are guarding the Yeerk homeworld to make sure the One doesn't get more Yeerks. We need you to warn the world leaders of the possibility of a new invasion.))

"Why me?" she asked.

((Jake and Marco are busy, and no one will believe me. They wouldn't know who I am. We need your credibility.))

Cassie sat down on the ground and put her head in her hands. "I can't go through another one, Tobias," she said quietly.

((I know. I'm not asking you to. I just need you to tell everyone what could be happening again. If Jake and Marco fail, the Yeerks will come here. But we'll have allies this time. It will be different.))

"What are Jake and Marco doing?" she asked.

((We think the One might use Ax to get Yeerks from the Yeerk homeworld so he can start a new invasion.))

"Why would he use the Yeerk homeworld?" she asked. "There are plenty of other places to get Yeerks. Easier places, too."

((Like where?)) I demanded.

"The Hork-Bajir homeworld, the Taxxon planet, and even here on earth. We have hundreds of specialized prisons just for Yeerks. There are thousands of Yeerks right here on earth."

It hit me like a brick. ((And no one knows what happened to Ax. He could just walk into any Yeerk prison on Earth, take a truckload of Yeerks, and be on his way without trying to stop him. Meanwhile, Jake and Marco are waiting for something that isn't going to happen, and I'm off in this valley talking to you.))

"Is the One really that clever?" she asked.

((He tricked Crayak into following us into his own section of this galaxy. And he's smart enough to know what a threat we can be. Yes, yes he is that clever.))

"So what do we do? Where will he go?"

I thought about it for a few moments. Then I realized. ((Sun Tzu once said, "Know your enemy."))

Cassie took that in. "No," she whispered. "No, not that. Anything but that."

Rupert was starting to look alarmed. He looked from me to Cassie. He could only hear her end of the conversation, but it was enough to scare him.

I nodded my head. It must have been an odd thing to watch a bird do. ((Yes, I'm afraid so. What Yeerk would be a better recruit to fight us?))

"But not even Ax would be allowed there," Cassie said. "They wouldn't even let me in the few times I tried."

((Maybe they won't just let him walk in, but I don't think they could stop him.))

By this time, Santorelli had landed. Jeanne was still circling above our heads, keeping an eye out. I appreciated that. Jake must have taught them our usual procedure. Jeanne was dong my job.

"Who's this?" Cassie asked, looking at Santorelli. She wanted to change the subject.

((His name's Santorelli,)) I said. ((One of Jake's new recruits. The other's above us, doing my job.))

"I think I see him," Cassie answered.

((Her.))

"Kind of hard to tell by the morph," she pointed out. "Is that another red-tail?"

((It's the cool thing to do,)) I told her. I called up to Jeanne. ((How are things up there?))

((Not bad,)) she answered. ((You're clear except for that Andalite.))

"Andalite? What Andalite?" Cassie asked.

((You didn't bring an Andalite?)) I asked her.

((There's an Andalite a few thousand yards deeper into the valley, behind the trees. He is coming your way, actually,)) Jeanne told us.

I looked at Cassie. Neither of us said what we were thinking. But Santorelli did. ((Do you think it's Prince Aximili?)) he asked.

"I hope not," Cassie said. She turned to Robert. "Try to get somewhere safe," she told him. "If this is what we're afraid it is, you don't want to be here."

Santorelli and I demorphed. I started to morph to Hork-Bajir. I didn't want to be unprepared. Santorelli went rhino.

Cassie started to speak. "Tobias, how "

"Crayak," I answered. ((I'll explain later,)) I said as my thought-speak kicked in.

Cassie stayed human. She could morph to something dangerous in a mater of seconds. There was no need to alarm this Andalite if he was just an innocent Andalite tourist.

Of course, in the long Animorph tradition, our luck wasn't that good.