Kage ignored the commotion taking place around him and started his human morph. He watched his blades recede into his body, as well as his tail and beak. His skin took on a more olive complexion, and his hair became dark brown while his eyes kept their golden sheen.
Kage couldn't help but feel... weaker without his blades, not because of their usefulness as weapons, but because of their usefulness in general. A Hork-Bajir without blades was a Hork-Bajir without purpose, unable to strip bark. Especially not with the curiously fragile human fingernails Kage saw on the tips of his fingers..
This body is so... alien.
As his tail shrank into his body, Kage almost appeared to lose balance, but quickly regained his footing, stabalising himself instinctually when his ears came through.
Their hearing is so dull, he contemplated, And the mind... It seems so quick and ready to anger, and not just as an act of defense.
"I am ready to join you all." Kage commented, once the morph was complete.
Enough. I say, addressing the group as a whole, sternly. Corporal, I'm familiar with hazing rituals, but even you must be aware that an tactful unit is an effective one. Reli, Mesa, I need your complete and total focus with this. We need to convey the image of a reliable human service group under the watchful eye of not only a security detail, but also under the scrutiny of a Leeran psychic screening. I understand the sensation of words being new, but we need your full attention here.
This is why I needed Mesa to be human. There are some things in there that are kept secret for a very good reason. Any Leeran assigned here is usually forbidden from any other Leeran contact again, outside of other Leeran guards. Complete segregation from their own race.
This is where things get serious. I will answer any questions we are asked from here on in.
The ship finally comes into dock, resting silently in the docking bay. I flick a tentacle over the control panel and the walls become opaque once more. The shuttle door slides open and we are greeted by the Warden.
"Nhad," The Warden says, nodding towards me, "How did things go at GT&T? Everything was secure?"
The Warden is an imposing man, as tall as the average Hork-Bajir and with the physique of a man who appears to live his life on a prison ship with nothing else to do except life weights. His hair is jet-black and his eyes have been gen-modded to be just as black. Even the whites of hi eyes are jet-black, hinting that his eyes have been modified to see as clearly in the dark as they would in the day, as well as looking slightly into the infra-red spectrum.
Yes, Warden. I reply, pretending to transmit privately, but broadcasting to you all, Tiberi is clear. I found nothing within his mind to prove that he possessed knowledge of this facility. There was the suspicion of a mole in his corporation, however.
"Very good, Nhad." The Warden replies. He acknowledges you all for the first time. "I am certain you know the reason you are here. To repair our comms relay. Let me warn you that the Confidentiality Agreement you all signed is serious. You do not ask about this place. You do not ever talk again of this place. When you leave here you try your damned hardest to forget this place exists. Violation of your agreement is punishable by High Treason under both Human and Andalite Law as sanctioned by Leeran Delegation." He looks at the younger members of the group, "And let me assure you that the charges of treason do not take the excuse of youth into consideration. Think of this as the most intense on-the-job training of your lives."
Warden, I speak up, The security detail is already present and screened. Shall we proceed?
The Warden regards Fisher and his team for a moment before addressing them, "Let me make one thing perfectly clear to you, Major," He says, looking directly at Fisher, "I don't care what you or your men managed back on Saturn, you aren't the first to encounter a Veleek swarm. You're New Blood here and that means you're under close watch. You earn our trust when you take a bullet. One for each of you. You botch any part of this up and you'll find yourself a Corporal on Paradise guarding the highest peak on the planet. Alone." The Warden looks back to me, "General Oran is waiting for you up ahead, he'll take you the rest of the way. Dismissed."
With that, the Warden leaves and we exit the shuttle. Around us are high ranking human and Andalite military personnel, each armed with the latest in projectile and energy weapons.
Corporal, I say, pointing a tentacle to door in front of us, You may want to arm yourselves in the armory through that door. Try to be as quick as you can.
