Allow us to fill in the blanks of the animorphs universe.

[najmita]

     1) How does Andalite language work?

     I get that there's something about an Andalite's emotions that factors in to it all, but the Andalites DO have a language. Humans have many languages. We also have mouths. These diverse languages have dialects, and require certain pronunciations, inflections, and working your throat and such to say a certain word properly.** How does this work for a species that a) doesn't have--as far as we know-- dialects or other languages, or b) mouths to make noises at all. Body language can say a lot, but could the Andalites convey a whole lot in their body movements and still be as "advanced" as they claim?

     Let's take the word Hirac Delest. I always imagined that it sounded like the "rac" would come from the throat. But could they make that noise without having the mouth parts to do it? I don't know. I have a limited--non-existent-- knowledge on mouths and languages; other than the fact that I have one and use the other...or both...

Using body movements to communicate doesn't mean Andalites cannot be advanced. For example, sign languages used by deaf people are real proper languages with their own grammar and even poetry.
That aside, I too always wondered about Andalite language and how it translates into words that can be said and heard. Andalites seem uncapable of producing a larger range of noises, apart from snorting or something like that, and they communicate mainly in thoughtspeak.
Maybe they associate sounds made by other things (animals hissing or leafs rustling, I don't know) with notions they talk about. Maybe tose associations come from the time Andalites still used mainly body language, and they pretended to be, say, a tree, if they meant "beautiful", and now the Andalite word for "beautiful" sounds like a tree  swaying in the wind Yeah, that is not contrived at all.
Still, linguists have no idea how human languages came into being, so it's no big deal we don't know the origins of an alien one...

4) Where are the other species the Yeerks apparently have infested/conquered? [...]     
     Or, as some believe, Temrash either lied or exaggerated when he bragged to Jake?****

That's it, I think. Temrash was a jerk.

[TobiasMasonPark]

     It seems strange that the Ellimist would make a time ship, even though he can bend time as often as he likes (with regards to the rules of his game with Crayak. I think he built it for his chess pieces to use. It got Elfangor on Earth, after all, and that resulted in the conception and birth of one of his most important warriors. Maybe he hoped the Animorphs would stumble upon it on their own.

     Of course, that doesn't make much sense now that I think about it: he wouldn't just let them use the Time Matrix all willy-nilly. That would have been a big win for the Ellimist-- and something tells me Crayak wouldn't like that.

     So maybe the Ellimist is unable to retrieve his time ship himself? Maybe the rules of the game prevent him from moving it from the construction site? Then, after the Animorphs defeated Visser Four, the Ellimist was able to take it back?

     Again, WHY he would want to build a time machine when he can time travel already is something I just can't wrap my head around...

[DinosaurNothlit]

Suppose, maybe, that the Time Matrix was somehow some weird side effect of the (equally weird) process of Ellimist/Crayak's creation?  They go through the black hole into the other side of reality, and at the same time this random little white sphere pops back out, on our side?  One of those 'conservation of matter/energy' things.  'Conservation of reality,' maybe, might be a better term, since conservation of matter/energy don't really apply to the Ellimist or Crayak.

Anyway, I see it as sort of an anchor or something.  A thing cannot exist, with no connection to reality at all, right?  So, maybe, the Time Matrix is simply that root, that holds Crayak and the Ellimist to this universe.  Or, perhaps, another apt comparison might be the morphed matter that goes into z-space when someone morphs a smaller creature.  It's just something that's there, because it needs to be.

It can time-travel and create new realities, quite simply, because the Ellimist and Crayak can.  It's of the same reality-non-reality as they are, but it doesn't have sentience of its own (why should it, when it's just a random blob of wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey stuff sorry couldn't resist), which opens it up for anybody to take control of it.  And it can't be destroyed, so, basically, the Ellimist and Crayak are just stuck with this stupid little thing that neither of them wants to exist but does anyway.

It all still fits with canon, of course, because technically they would still have 'created' it, by virtue of their own existence.

But this opens up a startling possibility.  Since the Ellimist and Crayak each came into their own plane of existence separately . . . it is then entirely possible, according to my theory, that there are two Time Matrices out there.  Can't really prove otherwise, can you?  Certainly an intriguing thought, that there could be another one out there somewhere.

[TobiasMasonPark]

     ^Or an orb that does something else, perhaps.

[MoppingBear]

What if the elimmist created it while he was powerful, but before he got blackholeafied into being all powerfull?

[RYTX]

I don't think that the Ellimist created the time matrix for his pawns because as stated in megamorphs 3 it could endanger Crayak or the Ellimist's existence

"In other words, this Time Matrix could endanger Crayak himself," Marco
translated.

To which the Drode responded "Don't be a fool. Nothing threatens great Crayak. However. .
. one doesn't want mere baboons blundering about with Time Matrices, does one?
Who knows what harm they might do? Oh, sure, it's all fun and games when they
end up starting genocidal wars or engendering race hatred - but who knows what other damage a fool with such power may do"

Sounds much more like Crayak doesn't want it in the hands of anyone else that might just *** up his game

What if the elimmist created it while he was powerful, but before he got blackholeafied into being all powerfull?

While I'm most fond of this theory, as it makes the most sense (since demigod Ellimist doesn't need it) we don't really KNOW the Ellimist made it.
Elfangor said he did. Andalite lore seems to think so, but you think that'd be tapped on in TEC. All we know is in Aniverse he's aware of it and tries to keep it out of play, because that's how he roles. But really, that he made it is almost nonsensical, and very poorly documented

[SmartGirl333]

     7) What do you think happened to Esplin 9466 lesser?
     

He became host to Joe Bob Fenestre (and appears in The Hork-Bajir Chronicles  and The Warning. Have you read either of those?

[Zacharychaos]

Major question here:

1) Why, after infesting Alloran and 'sharing' the Time Matrix with Loren/Elfangor, why did Esplin 9466/Visser Three attempt to send the trio to the Yeerk home world?

It is stated very clearly in Visser that when Edriss touched down on Earth for the first time, that she would use the endless supply of humans to overwhelm the Andalites and "take back the pools that spawned us". She goes on to say there was a massive Andalite fleet in orbit over the Yeerk homeworld. And since she states Elfangor was [already] their most hated enemy, that must mean he had returned from his human-nothlit form and been active for years.

So, since the Andalite chronicles predates his years on Earth, that means the sub-Visser Esplin tried to transport the three into Andalite controlled space. Can't wrap my head around that one.

(And no, I can't see the sub-Visser just convincing the Andalites in orbit to give him a ship which he would attempt to steal, dash for Yeerk space, and hope he doesn't get obliterated by some dimwitted patrol. Alloran was a war criminal and was specifically sent on a "meaningless" task because he wasn't trusted.)

[Allan_Oran]

1) Why, after infesting Alloran and 'sharing' the Time Matrix with Loren/Elfangor, why did Esplin 9466/Visser Three attempt to send the trio to the Yeerk home world?

My immediate response to this was that we know where Esplin 9466 intended to go, but not when.
It's possible he wanted to use the Time matrix to travel to just before the Andalites came to the Yeerk homeworld in order to get the jump on the first landing party. Scouting party lands on Yeerk homeworld, returns as controllers, and begins the secret invasion of the Andalite race without the Andalites ever even knowing what a Yeerk is or what to look out for.
With the Andalites as the first infested race, the rest would just be a domino effect.

[Allan_Oran]

I don't think that the Ellimist created the time matrix for his pawns because as stated in megamorphs 3 it could endanger Crayak or the Ellimist's existence

"In other words, this Time Matrix could endanger Crayak himself," Marco
translated.

To which the Drode responded "Don't be a fool. Nothing threatens great Crayak. However. .
. one doesn't want mere baboons blundering about with Time Matrices, does one?
Who knows what harm they might do? Oh, sure, it's all fun and games when they
end up starting genocidal wars or engendering race hatred - but who knows what other damage a fool with such power may do"

Sounds much more like Crayak doesn't want it in the hands of anyone else that might just *** up his game

Time travel kills everything. It can kill plot holes or even entire books. Grab the Time Matrix, travel back to when...

 [spoiler]Ellimist was still a Ketran or before Crayak had a 'world ship' thing at his disposal...[/spoiler]

...Kill them, they no longer exist, just like everything else. The only thing that can protect you from time travel is if you time travel first.

[Zacharychaos]

Time travel kills everything. It can kill plot holes or even entire books. Grab the Time Matrix, travel back to when...

 [spoiler]Ellimist was still a Ketran or before Crayak had a 'world ship' thing at his disposal...[/spoiler]

...Kill them, they no longer exist, just like everything else. The only thing that can protect you from time travel is if you time travel first.

I don't think it's that simple, since both the Ellimist and Crayak reached a point "beyond time" where they could change things at will. At best, a "baboon" with the Time Matrix would be able to deeply interfere with their well-laid "Chess match." The problem is, even though a sentient being with the TM would be a speck of dust compared to E/C, it would require direct intervention for one of them to eliminate the meddler which would violate the "rules of the game".

Hence a mutual agreement to use the Animorphs as a proxy.

[Zacharychaos]

1) Why, after infesting Alloran and 'sharing' the Time Matrix with Loren/Elfangor, why did Esplin 9466/Visser Three attempt to send the trio to the Yeerk home world?

My immediate response to this was that we know where Esplin 9466 intended to go, but not when.
It's possible he wanted to use the Time matrix to travel to just before the Andalites came to the Yeerk homeworld in order to get the jump on the first landing party. Scouting party lands on Yeerk homeworld, returns as controllers, and begins the secret invasion of the Andalite race without the Andalites ever even knowing what a Yeerk is or what to look out for.
With the Andalites as the first infested race, the rest would just be a domino effect.

A pretty reasonable explanation and one I (duh) didn't think too hard about. But then there's a whole other issue when it comes to attempting a secret invasion of andalites. Specifically, under what conditions would the sub-Visser be able to leave Alloran to feed for the first time, without Alloran thought-screaming about the threat? Unlike a human, being bound would be inadequate. It would be incredibly difficult starting from 1 andalite to successfully infiltrate others, because every single time an andalite-Controller feeds, ever, they would have the potential to alarm their compatriots. They would have to be knocked out or drugged, which is probably not a viable plan for the sub-Visser if he arrived immediately prior to "Seerow's Kindness".

Not to mention that if he got the date wrong, he would end up stranded there for 3+ days, and we can only speculate how that would turn out.

[Salad Shooter]

1) Why, after infesting Alloran and 'sharing' the Time Matrix with Loren/Elfangor, why did Esplin 9466/Visser Three attempt to send the trio to the Yeerk home world?

My immediate response to this was that we know where Esplin 9466 intended to go, but not when.
It's possible he wanted to use the Time matrix to travel to just before the Andalites came to the Yeerk homeworld in order to get the jump on the first landing party. Scouting party lands on Yeerk homeworld, returns as controllers, and begins the secret invasion of the Andalite race without the Andalites ever even knowing what a Yeerk is or what to look out for.
With the Andalites as the first infested race, the rest would just be a domino effect.

A pretty reasonable explanation and one I (duh) didn't think too hard about. But then there's a whole other issue when it comes to attempting a secret invasion of andalites. Specifically, under what conditions would the sub-Visser be able to leave Alloran to feed for the first time, without Alloran thought-screaming about the threat? Unlike a human, being bound would be inadequate. It would be incredibly difficult starting from 1 andalite to successfully infiltrate others, because every single time an andalite-Controller feeds, ever, they would have the potential to alarm their compatriots. They would have to be knocked out or drugged, which is probably not a viable plan for the sub-Visser if he arrived immediately prior to "Seerow's Kindness".

My headcanon (described in more detail in my fic Primary: the rise of Esplin 9466) is that the Yeerks briefly retook the home world between the Hork-Bajir Chronicles and the Andalite Chronicles, but the Andalites eventually wrested it back from them.

So Esplin was trying to go back in time, but to avert the recapture of the Andalite home world. Which would be long after Seerow.

[Zacharychaos]

1) Why, after infesting Alloran and 'sharing' the Time Matrix with Loren/Elfangor, why did Esplin 9466/Visser Three attempt to send the trio to the Yeerk home world?

My immediate response to this was that we know where Esplin 9466 intended to go, but not when.
It's possible he wanted to use the Time matrix to travel to just before the Andalites came to the Yeerk homeworld in order to get the jump on the first landing party. Scouting party lands on Yeerk homeworld, returns as controllers, and begins the secret invasion of the Andalite race without the Andalites ever even knowing what a Yeerk is or what to look out for.
With the Andalites as the first infested race, the rest would just be a domino effect.

A pretty reasonable explanation and one I (duh) didn't think too hard about. But then there's a whole other issue when it comes to attempting a secret invasion of andalites. Specifically, under what conditions would the sub-Visser be able to leave Alloran to feed for the first time, without Alloran thought-screaming about the threat? Unlike a human, being bound would be inadequate. It would be incredibly difficult starting from 1 andalite to successfully infiltrate others, because every single time an andalite-Controller feeds, ever, they would have the potential to alarm their compatriots. They would have to be knocked out or drugged, which is probably not a viable plan for the sub-Visser if he arrived immediately prior to "Seerow's Kindness".

My headcanon (described in more detail in my fic Primary: the rise of Esplin 9466) is that the Yeerks briefly retook the home world between the Hork-Bajir Chronicles and the Andalite Chronicles, but the Andalites eventually wrested it back from them.

So Esplin was trying to go back in time, but to avert the recapture of the Andalite home world. Which would be long after Seerow.

Seems like a reasonable possibility (out of the few that seem plausible) although it would raise the question of why the Andalites would throw a fleet at a non-strategic target (the Yeerk home world) when the real bottleneck was the Yeerk host availability. In other words, why drop the HB homeworld and go after the Yeerk world instead?

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Keep in mind that we don't know the Gedd population on the Yeerk homeworld, and the Yeerks have proven them to be at least passable hosts. For all we know, letting the Yeerks have their own homeworld would be equivalent to letting ten thousand or a hundred thousand or a million hosted Yeerks loose on the galaxy at once. Considering that the Yeerk Empire was grown from just a handful of Gedd-hosted Yeerks originally, I'd think that would essentially spell the end for the Andalites.

The only thing that can protect you from time travel is if you time travel first.

I find this funny