Applegate, K A - Animorphs 18 - The Decision

by The Decision (lit)

  CHAPTER 23

  We passed through a loose ring of Leeran-Controllers set up around the far edges of the City of Worms. None challenged us. We were riding Yeerk-issued water jets, and we stayed far enough off that no one could read our thoughts. The Leeran city rose from the seabed like a wondrous tower, perhaps half a thousand feet wide at its base, dwindling to a few dozen feet at the very top. The top pressed right against the sparkling water ceiling, up to the border between sea and sky. At the very top, huge fans sucked in air and blew out exhaust from the entire city. The city itself violated every logical law, at least as far as Andalites or humans were concerned. Andalites and humans are accustomed to moving in two dimensions, left and right, forward and back. But in the water, up and down were just as likely as left or right. 8It looks like a gigantic Dairy Queen cone , poked full of a million holes,"; Cassie said. 8Look! Doors everywhere. Windows and doors all the same."; The predominant color was pink. But there was blue and green and purple as well, in vast swatches of seemingly random color. Openings were everywhere. Leerans drifted in and out and around and through, a hundred feet up, twenty feet below us, everywhere. And like some slow-motion tornado, the long, electric-blue worms swam around and around the City of Worms. They formed an eerie halo. Even as strangers, we could tell the city was tense. There were weapons poking from many of the windows. And nestled up against the base of the city, floating free, were two craft I'd seen only in pictures: Andalite submarines. 8Are those good guys or bad guys?"; Prince Jake asked, gazing at the submarines. 8Or a little of each?"; Marco asked dryly. 8They are Andalite vessels,"; I said. 8Let's go say hello,"; Prince Jake said. We swam toward the submarines. As we got nearer we could see that a transparent tunnel had been set up between the subs and the city. Andalite warriors were rushing through the tunnel on urgent errands, their tails cocked and ready. Down we went, sifting air from the water with our Leeran skin. Down we went, expecting at any moment to be challenged, even shot. But we passed through dozens of Leerans who made no move to stop us. 8It's the psychic thing,"; Cassie said. 8They know who we are and why we're here."; 8Then I guess they know who we're looking for,"; Prince Jake said. And to my amazement, an answer came. It was a vision that filled my head: a sort of arrow showing a doorway we should enter. 8Ooookay,"; Marco said. 8I guess we follow the yellow brick road."; We entered the city through one of the thousands of windows. I don't know what I expected inside, but it wasn't what I found. The tower was merely a shell. Inside were seven or eight, maybe more, huge, floating, transparent bubbles. In each bubble there were levels, a dozen or more floors. There were open holes in the bottoms of the bubbles. Some seemed to be filled with water. Others were filled with air. All contained Leerans doing work, sleeping, living. And one, mostly air, contained perhaps two dozen Andalites on one floor. We entered the bubble from the bottom and stepped out at last onto dry ground. Two Andalite warriors were waiting. 8Demorph,"; one said curtly. 8The Leerans have told us who you are. Commander Galuit is waiting."; 8So humility is just not something you Andalites do, is it?"; Marco asked. We demorphed. It felt good to be Andalite again. But I was worried. I was nervous. I had given my word to Prince Jake that he, and only he, would decide whose orders I should obey. It had seemed easy to make that promise before. But now we were going to see Galuit! The idea of saying no to him ... it made me gasp. We rushed and stumbled to the room where Galuit waited. Only he wasn't waiting. He was rushing forward to meet us. He was flanked by three tough-looking Andalite security guards, and accompanied by his aide, an Andalite who had lost one stalk eye and half his face from a war injury. 8.Aristh Aximili,"; Galuit said without bothering to introduce himself. 8allyes, sir, I--"; 8ationo time,"; he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. 8I'm a member of the highest circles, so I know all about your escapades on Earth. Yours and Elfangor's. Very disappointed in Elfangor. Although, by the galaxy, your brother could fight! I don't know how you came to be here with these humans of yours, but it is a stroke of luck! We need you."; I was almost completely bowled over. First of all, Galuit even knowing my name was incredible. It would be as if a human child were sitting at home by the telephone and suddenly got a call from the head general of the army. Second, Galuit needed me? Needed? Me? 8Sir, may I introduce this human named Jake?"; 8I said I need you. Now stand to attention and listen to my--"; 8Sir, this is Jake. My prince."; That stopped Galuit in mid-yell. The guards all stared incredulously at Prince Jake. Then at me. Then at Marco and Cassie, as if they might be able to explain. 8Every warrior must have a prince to follow, and the princes must obey the People,"; I said. Galuit looked like he was seriously considering using his old tail on me. But then he nodded stiffly. 8Just so, Aristh. No one is a law unto themselves. We each must serve."; Galuit turned to speak to Prince Jake. 8I have need of you to save this planet from the Yeerks. Will you--"; 8allyes,"; Prince Jake said. 8ally say yes without knowing what I'm asking."; 8Will it save the Leerans? Will it keep them free? And most of all, will it hurt the Yeerks?"; 8allyes to all three. Especially the last. If we save Leera it may turn the tide of the war against the Yeerks."; 8Then we'll do it."; Galuit seemed surprised. Maybe even impressed. In private thought-speak he said to me, 8I have known worse princes than this one.";

  CHAPTER 24

  Galuit explained what he needed and why. It was exactly what I had suspected. The reason we had to flee the land and take to the sea. The reason I could not risk being taken by the Yeerks: It had all been a trap. A trap for the Yeerks. 8We knew the Yeerks would take the battle to the continent,"; Galuit said. 8And we thought it very likely they would defeat us there. So we had a backup plan. We have planted a series of quantum bombs around the continent. Our plan was to wait until the Yeerks had moved all their troops down to the continent, then explode the bombs."; I nodded. 8allyes, I suspected this."; Prince Jake looked at me out of the corner of his eyes, then raised one eyebrow. It wasn't an angry look, as I interpret human expressions. It was a little reproachful, though. We had transferred to one of the submarines and were already racing at maximum speed, south to a point on the continent. 8The Leerans don't need the continent. They are quite happy in their underwater cities,"; Galuit said. 8But there's been some kind of problem with setting off the bombs. Our forces were overrun much too quickly. With the Ascalin's forces we should have held out longer. The main switch was never armed. We've been beaming the destruct signal for hours. Nothing. And the Yeerks will soon discover our trap. It's now or never."; I hesitated. Should I tell Galuit why our forces were so easily overrun? I took a deep breath. 8Sir, the Ascalin was never in the fight."; Galuit swiveled both stalk eyes toward me. 8What?"; 8Captain Samilin was ... a traitor,"; I said. 8He set the ship toward a landing behind Yeerk lines. He was killed. Once it was clear the Ascalin could not escape, Tactical Officer Harelin made the decision to fire all weapons while on the ground. No one survived. Except for us and two of our friends who have disappeared."; I could see Galuit slump. He seemed suddenly older. More frail. "Why us?" Marco asked. "Why do you need us to go in and arm this switch?" 8We have few Andalites here on the planet now. And none who possess the wide array of morphs you have,"; Galuit explained. 8All Andalite warriors are morph-capable. But few acquire morphs or use them. That is mostly done by our people in intelligence. Spies. But you four may be able to penetrate the Yeerk forces."; Suddenly he looked confused. His eyes went left, then right. 8I was sure it was four. Where is the other human?"; A cold lance of fear struck my hearts. Prince Jake was still there. Cassie, too. But Marco ... "Marco!" Prince Jake cried. "Marco! Marco!" 8We are disappearing one by one!"; I said. Galuit yelled a thought-speak summons that was heard clear through the submarine. 8Science officer, report to me, right now!"; "This is insane!" Cassie said, her eyes blazing. "What is happening? One by one we're disappearing." Cold fear wormed through my insides. I felt sorry for Marco and the others. Very sorry. But now I was more afraid than anything. It didn't take too much imagination to figure out that the rest of us would be disappearing eventually. It's o
ne thing to face an enemy. It's very different to wait, powerless, for some unseen force to simply ... delete you. The sub raced on through the bright Leeran sea. But there was no time to enjoy the view. Prince Jake, Cassie, and I were surrounded by Andalites. We were cross-examined by the sub's science officer. In between questions from him we were bombarded by questions from Galuit and a counterintelligence officer. It was nerve-racking. But at least it kept my mind off the awful suspense of waiting ... waiting ... waiting for another one of us to disappear. 8How long were you in Zero-space?"; 8Are you sure Captain Samilin knew the ship was heading for Yeerk lines?"; 8What was the mass of the creature you morphed on Earth before being dragged into Zero-space?"; 8Did Captain Samilin seem embittered, stressed?"; At last, after an hour, Galuit put an end to it. 8Enough! Samilin was a traitor. We have to accept that."; He turned to the science officer. 8And you've asked the same questions fifty times. Give me a hypothesis."; 8Sir, I don't have enough--"; the science officer started to say. 8Just give me your best guess!"; Galuit demanded. 8I ... I think these humans and this aristh are still caught in a residual flux field. It is pulling them back toward Zero-space. It may even be snapping them all the way back to Earth. But my best guess is that what's happening is a sort of elastic effect. They were stretched through Zero-space and back into normal space, but a small amount of their mass is still back on Earth. It may be acting like an anchor."; "We're on some big Zero-space rubber band?" Prince Jake asked. "It's been stretching all this time, and now it's starting to snap back?" 8allyes,"; the science officer said, after I explained what a rubber band was. "Maybe all the way back to Earth, in which case Rachel and Tobias and Marco are alive," Cassie said. "Or maybe just into Zero-space. In which case ..." 8From the data you've given me, the effect appears to be accelerating,"; the science officer said. 8ally will go, one by one, faster and faster now. Like your friends, you will each disappear."; Galuit said, 8Under these circumstances, I cannot ask you to carry out this mission."; Prince Jake shrugged. "Under these circumstances, it doesn't look like we have anything to lose."

  CHAPTER 25

  We were briefed by one of Galuit's officers. 8The central arming unit is well hidden. It is in what the Leerans call a "bright hole." Here on Leera the volcanic past created a number of large, underground bubbles in the rock. Because the rock contains a great many phosphorescent minerals and bio-organisms, there is light in these holes, and thus, life."; "What kind of life?" Cassie asked. Even now, she was interested in living things. 8Plant only, aside from insects and microscopic animals. This particular "bright hole" can only be reached two ways: Either someone on the surface must tunnel down through several feet of rock. Or one must travel underwater, up a river, enter an underwater cave, pass through an absolutely lightless tunnel, and emerge at last in the "bright hole.""; Prince Jake took a deep breath. Cassie took a deep breath. I took a deep breath. We each looked at each other. Galuit said, 8That's not all. The river itself may be guarded by Leeran-Controllers. The lightless cave is inhabited by a species of snake that uses echolocation to strike at anything passing by. These snakes hang from the ceilings and walls. But once within the "bright hole" you are safe. Unless, of course, the Yeerks have already found it."; "Is it too late for us to change our minds?" Prince Jake said. Galuit looked alarmed. 8It is humor,"; I said quickly. 8Human humor often consists of pretending to wish something one does not really wish."; "What makes you so sure I don't mean it?" Prince Jake muttered. 8More humor,"; I explained to Galuit. The submarine took us to the mouth of the river. It was as close as it could take us without becoming far too visible for safety. "I know the oceans are saltwater here, just like on Earth," Cassie said. "But how about the rivers?" 8The rivers are lower saline,"; the briefing officer said. Cassie shook her head. "Hammerheads are saltwater fish. I don't know how they'd deal with freshwater. I just don't know. But they're still probably the best morph for moving fast and winning fights." 8Good luck,"; Galuit said. 8The freedom of this planet rests on your tails. Or ... or whatever humans have that would be the equivalent of tails."; "Shoulders," Cassie said. "As long as there's no pressure," Prince Jake said. 8That would be human humor?"; Galuit asked. "Plus a little human fear," Prince Jake said. But then he laughed. Five minutes later, we were in the river, swimming against the current, our dorsal fins slicing upward into the air. 8This should be interesting,"; Prince Jake said darkly. 8I smell Leerans,"; I said. 8Up ahead. I recognize the smell from before."; 8allyep,"; Cassie agreed. 8Good Leerans or bad? That's the question."; We powered ahead. Through the slightly murky river water we saw them: two pebbly, yellow, tentacled amphibians. Psychic amphibians. As soon as we were within range of them, the Leerans knew what we were. They turned and swam away as if their lives depended on it. 8After them!"; Prince Jake cried. They were heading for the banks of the river. Trying to get up, out of the water, beyond our reach. They didn't have water jets, just their natural Leeran bodies. We were faster, but the bank was close, closer! The water grew shallow. No more than seven feet. Five feet! The Leerans were kicking up mud, but my shark senses could feel the electrical field of the Leerans now. Blind, scraping my belly in mud, I lunged. My teeth bit down. I clamped and held on and struggled to pull the creature back out into the water. But then, up through the ripply surface I saw a huge, looming Hork-Bajir. Two, no, four of them! They came stomping out into the water. I pulled back. I tried to turn as the Leeran kept fighting me. Then I heard the Leeran's psychic cry to the Hork-Bajir. 8..Explosives! The whole continent is rigged to explode. There's a central switch. Bright hole! It's in a--"; I bit down harder. The pain stopped the Leeran from saying more. A Hork-Bajir blade slashed down into the water. It sliced me, but not deep. I let go of the Leeran, jerked my head right, bit down with all my might on the nearest Hork-Bajir's leg. I heard a howl of pain come burbling down through the water. The Leeran was scrambling away. Still half-blind, I lunged. The Hork-Bajir had backed off. And now I dragged the Leeran-Controller back out into deeper water. 8ationo!"; the Yeerk in his head cried. 8Oh, yes,"; I said. I swept behind him and bit off the lobe at the back of his head. Out came the Yeerk. 8Are you okay, brother Leeran?"; I asked. 8..I am now. Thank you, my Andalite friend! Hurry. Hurry! The Yeerks know your mission now! Hurry!"; I turned back upstream. Cassie and Jake fell in beside me. They had each had their own battles in the murky, shallow water. 8How long will it take the Yeerks to find this "bright hole"?"; Prince Jake asked. 8Using the sensors aboard their orbiting ships, they will have a map of every subsurface cavern on the continent within five minutes. How long to find the right "bright hole"? I don't know. We must hurry. The fate of this planet depends on us.";