Animorphs: A New Beginning

[Cloak]

((I'd like Bened to show up in a rather Azula fashion -- er, that's an Avatar reference, if anyone's unfamiliar with the series. . . . Anyway, I think he'd take delight in all the chaos that's bound to ensue.))

"Actually, Emily, I'm over here." Hu said, as Emily was talking to air to his right.  Hu deactivated his invisibility momentarily, and replied.  "To answer your question, Kelran's decided to go with Cody and 'em.  He mentioned a lot of technical jargon unfamiliar to me."

Hu decided that he had to say something.  His tone was dark and foreboding.  "Emily, I'm sure that Bened will be here.  His allies will be too.  If things get desperate -- if I have to take . . . just -- if I get out of control, you and the others must stop me.  By whatever means."

((I intend for Hu to have full control -- but not without effort -- of his newer form if he ever devolves.  Of course, then he would be a Smilodite version of the Hulk. . . .))

[Chad32]

Emily's POV:

"Oh, really? I kind of thought you...not that I have a problem with that, but I figured we wouldn't be seeing Bened anymore. That could be problematic. Not as problematic as Kelran being with Cody. I was hoping we could keep those two on separate teams. So what are we supposed to do? Our job was to cover Kelran so he could plant the explosives, and we can't do that by ourselves."

"Kelran has been a bit reckless. Surely his superior officers on his homeworld didn't encourage behavior like that."

[Cloak]

"True.  But we don't really know much about Gryphon military to make such an assumption.  At least, I don't.  And I can't fly -- I know of no powder or potion to enable me to do such either.  And I can't morph.  So, we're pretty much at the other's mercy at the moment." Hu said.

Then he glanced up the building.  "I could possibly climb up there using my claws, but we're suppose to be discreet.  It would be glaringly obvious that I had been here if I do that.  The holes."

Hu didn't mention that's how his great-grandfather lost a fang, climbing a cliff on a bet, earning him the derisive nickname of "Old Half-Tooth".

[Chad32]

"I'd be tempted to give Kelran a talking to, but I won't be standing around watching him waving that sword around. I'm not like Cody. My nerves are more like bricks than steel."

"Maybe if I morph a bird, you could use the invisibility cloak to get us close to the buildings."

[Cloak]

"Possibly," Hu said slowly, aware of potential disaster.  But then he heard an irritating sound, like claws scraping against . . .

"Emily, get out of sight!"

[Chad32]

Emily ran behind a door inside the building, and hunkered down. They had stayed in one place too long. Things were falling apart. What could she do? Morph? What if she was seen mid-morph. What if she was seen at all in her normal form? She wouldn't go back to that. She couldn't go back to that! She didn't make a sound. She barely even breathed.

[Kelran-Isthinar]

((sounds good, and Kelran can sacrifice himself for Cody during their simultaneous capture, since the Visser would be more eager for the stuff about technology in Kelran's head, and Kelran has a biological stopgap that means his infestation can only be voluntary. So he would allow himself to be infested ont he condition that cody isnt and then fight with this yeerk for control of his head playing a game of keep away with his body control and memories.... that would prove that Kelran truly cares for what happens to the animorphs and humanity. that and its the only way I can see to keep visser five from infesting cody or having checkmate information))

Unbeknownst to Emily and Cody a certain level of recklesness and daring-do was forcibly taught to Gryphons in the military, though it didnt take much doing considering their nature. Gryphons were expected to question their officers orders to a certain appropriate extent and take intiative even when the risk was great.
Having never fought guerilla type wars extensively this system was quite an asset to them.
But in an environment like this.. Kelran couldnt know it would lead to disaster.

Kelran stabbed a Controller non-fattally through the shoulder, then dented a Hork Bajirs head with the return swing from the butt of the sword. He fired off three quick shots and screeched, "No! Emily and Hu are going to be expecting that field to come down, and if we dont remove the building then they will simply ship in a new generator!"
He threw himself into a dive roll, towards the door to the lower level came up and slammed his wings into two human controllers.
He was so upset, that he lost control. he didnt see the Hork Bajir raising a Dracon to the back of his head.

[Chad32]

<That assumed they would even return a generator to this place at all!> Cody yelled as he bowled over another Hork-Bajir.

Cody saw the Hork-Bajir raise a dracon beam to the back of Kelran's head. In his head, he wondered if it was best to just let Kelran fall, but he found his body moving of its own will. He pushed forcibly against the wall with his tail, which catapulted himself at the Hork-Bajir. He was going to bit its arm clean off, but he pulled back.

TSSEEEWW!!

Cody crumpled to the ground, and two more Hork-Bajir jumped on top of him. They threw a heavy tarp over him to bind him, and yanked him down the hall. He couldn't see or move, but the dracon beam had sliced his upper and lower jaws clean off. He couldn't breath, and as his consciousness began to fade he forced himself to begin demorphing.

[Kelran-Isthinar]

((this is getting very good ))
Kelran was stunned by Cody's sacrifice, but not nearly as stunned as by what he found himself doing.
"NOOOO!!!!!" he screamed, it was more of an eagle like screech than a real word.
Some part of him knew. Knew what awaited Cody, knew that he was an honorable human. Knew that he was integral to the future of a very race.  Knew the right thing to do.
He snatched up a dracon twisted it to full power and vaporized one hork-bajir.
He then leapt on the other and cut it to bloody shreds.
But by then it was simply too late. Cody was unconcious and demorphing, and despite his superior physical assets, Kelran was now surrounded by hundreds of human and hork-bajir controllers.

He tried his best... but in the end, a smart and opportunistic human controller shot him twice on full stun, and he blacked out...

[Cloak]

"About time, big brother," Bened said, leaping down from the wall as if it was a normal day excursion.  Which it probably was.  "I was wondering when you'd show up.  They were aware of the potential attack on this building."

"So, it's another fight you want, is it?" Hu said, trying not to betray Emily's presence to Bened.  "Another stalemate?"


"No," Bened answered, leveling up a beam weapon called a Dracon Beam to Hu.  "This time, I'll deliver you these Yeerks.  They've agreed to allow me to do -- literally anything -- to you."

Hu noticed where Bened was aiming.  "Have you no honor, Bened?  You use one of those overly-flashy weapons instead of going claw-to-claw?!  Have you no decency!  You betray everything Aruten stood for!"

"So?" he said remorselessly in a careless way.

Has she morphed yet? Hu wondered.  Was she captured?  I cannot let that young one go the way of Lilas!

"RrrrrrrrrOOOOOOOWWW WWWWrrrrrrrrr!!"
"Tsssew."

((Okay, Hu is captured.  How about Emily retrieving the cloak that will be left behind?  The satchel is very much like a mokeskin bag from Potter, in that only Hu can open it and pull out its contents.  Oh, and Smilodites potentially can die when a Yeerk tries to infest them from their basic physiology.))

[Kelran-Isthinar]

((so my guess is that this is what happens... Visser 5, Hu, and Kelran strike a deal. If Kelran submits to infestation, and Hu submits to torture, they wont allow Bened to kill Hu or over-permanently damage him, and they wont infest cody.
What the Visser's thinking is, is that after Kelran is totally infested they can fully torture and kill Hu, and infest Cody anyways.
What they didnt count on is Kelran's neuro-physiology, which gives him a vastly increased line of internal defense.
So what they plan to do is keep switching his Yeerk in shifts near the end of each three day limit until his control is broken. But right near the end of the three days, the others show to save the day, and the Yeerk dies of starvation in the battle, and Hu carrys unconcious Kelran outta there.
This lets us have great torture scenes between Hu and Bened, and great moments between a Kelran whos phasing in and out of partial infestation, and Cody whos really p'oed. and Hu gets to save Kelran wich strengthens their friendship. Good? 

EDIT I also have an explanation for why his infestation must be voluntary. When he flattens his ears a certain way it brings a thick piece of bone down inside his ear canal. Ordinarily the Yeerks would drill through it, but because of its density if you applied enough force to do so, you would shatter his whole braincase and kill him ))

[Chad32]

Cody's POV:

Cody was jarred back to consciousness when he was dropped into some sort of container. He managed to peak out of the tarp to see nothing but darkness. Could the Yeerks see in, or were they as blind to the inside as he was to the outside. Stupid Kelran. He thought. All his fault.

He got out of the tarp by morphing ****roach, then demorphed and remorphed the croc. Soon he heard footsteps, and part of the darkness gave way to light. On the other side of a force field stood the Chief of Police. His interrogator.


Emily's POV: Emily flew out from behind the door in her small bird morph, after Bened had come. He had stunned and kidnapped Hu. She grabbed Hu's satchel and cloak, and put them in a hiding place. Then she flew up to the tower to warn the others.

<Cody! Cody! Bened is still alive, and he took Hu. What are we going to do?>

She noticed there had been a battle, and Kelran was injured. She couldn't see Cody. Judging from her friends faces, she feared the worst.

<No. Please no! where's Cody? Kelran! Why!? You were supposed to wait. You were supposed to be there, for us!> She flew erratically around the room. If she were Human in that instant, she would have cried. Her cried fell on deaf ears upon the stunned Gryphon.

[Cloak]

((Yeah, Kelran. :happy34:  Sounds good to me.  Possibly Hu, feeling weak and frail, takes the Devolution Draught to become a Gigantofatalismilodon and wreak havoc until he gets control.  And shrinks down to Hu's version of Bruce Banner. ))

[Kelran-Isthinar]

((Sweet! ))

Kelran began to stir... he opened one eye in time to see Emily and hear the tail end of her cries.
He rasped "Go. out. now. find.... yarin..."
Words that Emily heard.
Words that the Hork Bajir who again stunned him and 'handcuffed' him did not hear.

***********

Kelran's world slowly began to come into focus. He was dimly aware that he was lying on a cold flat surface... stone or something of the like.
There was a faint tingle in the spicules of his feathers... a forcefield nearby....
And the dim hum of voices...
Then there was light. and his eyes snapped open.
He was apparenlty inside a cell, contained by a forcefield inside a circular room. The cell was one of several that lead off the room, and a hallway and some sort of office also seemed to be attached to the chamber.

Then he noticed his cellmates. Across from him a man stood infront of another active cell, and to the left in the only other active cell was a heap of Smilodite. Apparently Hu. Which meant the other prisoner was Cody. Assuming the others had escaped.

Kelran groaned. his head still rang and throbbed from the triple stun he had recieved and he was cut and bleeding in a dozen small spots.
And thirsty. so thirsty.

[Cloak]

"Get up!  Hu, get up!"
"Too tired . . ."
"Listen to me, my son, you must rise!  Continue to lie down like this, and you will be truly dead!"
"Too . . . much . . ."
"My son, you must do the right thing!  Acceptance of death at this point would be easy and dishonorable! Do not take the easy way out!"
"No, please."
"Hu, you must help the humans.  It is your duty now.  You must hang on to your inner strength -- you're stronger than even you know.  But you . . . MUST . . . GET . . . UP!!"


Hu stirred.  His vision was blurred.  Suddenly he felt energy manicles grasp his wrists, ankles, neck and tail.  He was pulled, spread-eagle, to the wall.  When his vision cleared he saw Kelran on his right, and the gloating, sneering face of his little brother.

"Not yet, you obstinate feline!" a human voice cracked.  "Wait for the Visser."

Hu saw disappointment on his brother's face, mixed with fury.