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-----------
Animorphs #54: The Beginning
It began with 6. It will end with 5. No one ever thought it would be come to

this. Jake, Rachel, Tobias, Cassie, Marco, and Ax know that even if they

could have warned people in the beginning, no one would have believed their

story. A story about an invasion of parasitic aliens. So, for all this time,

Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax have secretly held the Yeerks at bay.

But those days are over. It’s come down to a final battle between the

Yeerks and Animorphs. And no one knows who will win, lose, or live...
<Read a sample chapter>
-----------------
http://scholastic.com/animorphs/books/animorphography/bkal1.htm

Animorphs #1: The Invasion
Sometimes weird things happen to people. Ask Jake. He may tell you about

the night he and his friends saw the strange light in the sky. He may even

tell you about what happened when they realized the "light" was only a

plane -- from another planet.

Here's where Jake's story gets a little weird. He and his friends are told the

human race is under attack, but they're given the chance to fight back.

Now Jake, Rachel, Cassie, Tobias and Marco have the power to morph into

any animal they choose. And they must use that power to outsmart an evil

that is greater than anything the world has ever seen...
<Read a sample chapter>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------
Animorphs #2: The Visitor
Morphing is certainly more fun than Sega -- you can soar as an eagle and

walk as a cat. But being an ANIMORPH is by no means just fun and games.

Rachel knew better than anyone. One of her best friends, Melissa, is acting

very strange. And it looks like Melissa's dad, who is also the school's

Assistant Principal, may be connected to evil aliens. Rachel can't tell

Melissa what the ANIMORPHS have learned, but Melissa doesn't seem

interested in talking to Rachel these days anyway. Could Melissa be one of

"them?"

With the help of Jake, Cassie, Tobias and Marco, Rachel plans to enter her

friend's house as a cat, intent on unlocking the secrets from within. If only

Rachel could keep her mind off mice...
<Read a sample chapter>

------------
Animorphs #3: The Encounter
When Tobias, Jake, Rachel, Marco and Cassie were given the ability to

morph, they were also given one very important warning: Never stay in a

morph for more than two hours. But Tobias stayed in his morph for too long.

Now he's a hawk -- with a boy's mind -- forever.

And he's starting to forget what he looked like. He's losing control, and

wants to give in to the hawk brain inside him. Tobias knows he can't give up,

but he's spotted a rat down below. He turns in midair and plummets down to

the earth. He's focused. He's determined. He strikes...
<Read a sample chapter>

---------------
Animorphs #4: The Message
It all started with the dreams. But Cassie didn't pay much attention to them.

She and her friends had all been having weird dreams ever since they'd first

learned to morph. Maybe it was just some crazy side effect.

Then Cassie discovered that she and Tobias had been having the exact

same dreams. Dreams about the ocean. And a strange feeling that someone

is calling to them. Calling for help. Cassie, Tobias, Jake, Rachel, and Marco

have to figure out if the dreams are a message -- or a trap. And if it is a

trap, it could mean the end -- for everyone...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #5: The Predator
Marco never wanted to be an Animorph. He never wanted the ability to

change into any animal he touches. He just wants to chill. Whatever

happens, happens.

Jake, Rachel, Cassie, and Tobias know why Marco feels the way he does.

He's worried about his dad -- the only family Marco has left. And if anything

happens to him, his father will be all alone.

But something is about to change Marco's mind. It seems the Yeerks have a

little surprise waiting for him. And it's definitely not nice. Now Marco has a

reason to fight...
<Read a sample chapter>

-------------
Animorphs #6: The Capture
It was really bad when Jake found out his older brother was one of them. It

was even worse when Tobias stayed in his morph too long. But nothing

compares to the horror the Animorphs are about to face. Nothing.

Jake, Rachel, Tobias, Cassie and Marco have a feeling they know where the

Yeerks' new base is located. And they've even figured out how to get in --

how many people notice a few flies on the wall?

But they never figured they might get caught. Or that Jake could fall into

the Yeerk pool. That Jake could become a human controller. A Yeerk.

The enemy.
<Read a sample chapter>

--------------
Animorphs #1: The Stranger
Okay. Rachel and the other Animorphs have finally found the new entrance

to the Yeerk pool. They've even figured out a way to sneak in. The infamous

roach morph. But they didn't count on roaches being a Taxxon delicacy. This

time escape doesn't look so good.


And then everything stops. Everything. The feasting Taxxon, the human-

controllers, the Hork-Bajir. Time. Now Rachel, Cassie, Marco, Jake, Tobias,

and Ax are in for their wildest trip ever. They're going to get the chance to

decide whether they want to stay on Earth and fight the Yeerks. Or go to

another planet. And the guy giving them the choice says he can save them.

Now all they have to do is make the choice...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #8: The Alien
What would you do if you were the only alien trapped on a strange planet?

Probably freak out, right? Well, that's what Ax feels like doing. But as an

Andalite warrior-cadet, he has to be pretty cool about stuff like that. He's

been hanging out with the Animorphs ever since the Dome ship was

destroyed by the Yeerks and his brother, Prince Elfangor, was destroyed by

Visser Three.

Life on Earth is pretty different for Ax. But there is one thing he, Cassie,

Marco, Jake, Rachel, and Tobias have in common. Something that one alien,

four kids and a hawk know they have to do...stop the Yeerks...
<Read a sample chapter>

-------------
Animorphs #9: The Secret
There's something pretty weird going on in the woods behind Cassie's house.

The place where Ax and Tobias call home. It seems the Yeerks have figured

out one very important thing: Andalites cannot survive without a feeding

ground. Visser Three knows the "Andalite bandits" don't feed where he

does, so there can only be one other place.

Now Cassie, Marco, Jake, Rachel, Tobias, and Ax have to figure out a way to

stop a bogus logging camp. Because if Visser Three finds Ax in the woods,

nothing will stop him from finding the Animorphs...
<Read a sample chapter>

---------------
Animorphs #10: The Android
When Marco runs into his old friend Erek he doesn't think too much of it.

He's got a couple of more important things to do. Like helping to save the

world. But then Marco finds out Erek's been hanging with some of the kids at

The Sharing. And he starts to think that something just a little weird is going

on.

So Marco, Jake, and Ax decide to morph and check old Erek out. Just to see

if he's been infested with a Yeerk. The good news is that Erek's not a

human-Controller. The bad news is that Erek's not even human...
<Read a sample chapter>

-------------
Animorphs #11: The Forgotten
There's been an accident. Someone crash-landed a Yeerk Bug fighter. And

the Yeerks have been trying to cover it up - quickly. But not before Tobias

spots it. So the Animorphs and Ax decide to steal the ship to show the world

that Earth has been invaded.

That's when things go terribly wrong. Before they know it, Jake, the

Animorphs, and Ax find themselves in another place. Another time. And

there's no way home...
<Read a sample chapter>

----------------
Animorphs #12: The Reaction
Rachel's got some pretty strange stuff happening. She can't control her

morphing. One minute, she's doing homework. The next, she's morphing a

full-grown crocodile, and -- without returning to human form -- she

becomes an elephant. That's when the floor gives way and Rachel finds

herself looking up at what used to be the kitchen ceiling.

What's going on? No one's sure, but Rachel and the other Animorphs have to

figure it out -- quickly. Because if someone sees Rachel's out-of-control

morphing, the other Animorphs and Ax are in for some serious trouble...
<Read a sample chapter>

--------------
Animorphs #13: The Change
Tobias has pretty much gotten used to his life. He's a red-tailed hawk with

the mind of a kid. It was weird when he first got trapped in morph. But now

it's almost okay. After all, how many kids actually get the chance to fly?

Now Tobias is about to make a very special choice. A choice that the other

Animorphs and Ax know nothing about. And it could mean the difference

between being a hawk...and being human...
<Read a sample chapter>

----------------
Animorphs #14: The Unknown
There's a new rumor in town. Someone has discovered an item that proves

life on other planets exists. And they've been hiding it on a base called Zone

91. The Most Secret Place On Earth.

Cassie, the other Animorphs, and Ax already know about life on other

planets. Too well. They also realize the Yeerks will try to access Zone 91.

To find out if what's there will threaten their mission. So the Animorphs

decide to pay Zone 91 and the Yeerks a little visit. But what they discover

is not at all what they expect...
<Read a sample chapter>

--------------
Animorphs #15: The Escape
Almost nothing could be as bad as finding out your mother is Visser One.

The most powerful of all Vissers. The leader of the Yeerk invasion of Earth.

But it happened to Marco. And even though he's been handling it pretty

well, he knew there'd come a time when he'd have to face her again.

Knowing that the Yeerk in her brain had taken his mother away.

So when Marco, the other Animorphs, and Ax discover that Visser One is

overseeing a secret underwater project, they know they have to check it

out. But Marco's not sure if this is a battle he'll be able to fight...
<Read a sample chapter>

------------
Animorphs #16: The Warning
Jake's made a pretty amazing discovery. It seems like there may be other

people who know about the invasion. Others who know about the Yeerks.

Jake finds a Web site devoted to the Yeerks. And Jake, the other

Animorphs, and Ax aren't sure it's too good to be true.

But if they try to investigate the site and it's a trap, there's no way the

Yeerks won't find out who they are. If they don't check it out, they'll never

know if they're the only ones fighting. Whatever Jake and the others decide

to do, they've got to move quickly, because Visser Three isn't the only one

dying to meet them...
<Read a sample chapter>

------------
Animorphs #17: The Underground
What's tasty, good for you, and only takes sixty seconds to make? Oatmeal.

And it's making the Yeerks more than a little crazy. Now Rachel, the other

Animorphs, and Ax have a new weapon against the Yeerks. Sounds good,

right?

Wrong. Because it means another trip to the Yeerk pool. And the possibility

of running into Visser Three. And of not being able to get back up to the

surface. The Animorphs and Ax have taken chances before and been very

lucky. But this time their luck may be about to run out...
<Read a sample chapter>

------------
Animorphs #18: The Decision
Ax and the Animorphs are about to have a huge problem. It starts when they

decide to morph mosquitoes in order to slip by some unsuspecting Yeerks. It

ends with them stuck in Zero-space with no idea how they got there, no way

to get back to Earth...and no oxygen.

Luckily, an Andalite scout ship finds them before it's too late. But now Ax is

finally with his own people. And he doesn't know if he ever wants to go back

to Earth...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #19: The Departure
Cassie's had it. After the last mission, she realizes she's getting tired of

missions. Tired of battles. Tired of being an Animorph. She decides that she

just can't do it anymore. So she quits.

But that's not the worst that's happened. It seems a human-Controller

named Karen followed Cassie after the last run-in with the Yeerks. And she

knows Cassie is an Andalite...or human. Either way, if she exposes Cassie,

it's all over. No more Cassie. No more Animorphs. No more planet Earth ...
<Read a sample chapter>

---------------
Animorphs #20: The Discovery
The blue box Elfangor used to create the Animorphs has been found by a kid

named David. David has no idea what he has -- or what it can do. But

Marco does. And when he sees David with it, he knows the Animorphs have

to get that box. At any cost.

But what should have been a simple plan ends up going horribly wrong. And

David is on the run with the Animorphs and Ax. Now they have only two

choices: turn David over to the Yeerks. Or make him the sixth Animorph.
<Read a sample chapter>

---------------
Animorphs #21: The Threat
There is a new Animorph. And he's arrived just in time, because the Yeerks

are preparing their biggest takeover ever. The ultimate target: the world's

most powerful leaders gathered together in one place. What better way to

get into the minds of humans? Literally

At first, David joins the fight with a vengeance. But there is definitely

something wrong. Because he's starting to break the rules. Taking risks that

could get them all captured. Or killed. The Animorphs don't know what to do.

Because there was a time when the Yeerks were their greatest enemy.

That's about to change...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------



我喜欢千万法，我用压码和右脑给千万别学英语一个杠杆，撬起零基础到达自由王国；压码只有一个指标：通过滞后提高速度，速度就是质量,给它注入一个加速器，就会产生一个个奇迹.
[楼 主] | Posted:2005-02-12 12:41|  


sunyuting1





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选择词库级别千万5000英英辞典四级(新大纲)GRE(新大纲)Tofel(新大纲) ★[criterion n. A standard by which to determine the correctness of a judgment or conclusion.]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------
Animorphs #22: The Solution
David, the newest Animorph, is not what he appears. His need to control the

other Animorphs and Ax is all he thinks about. And the things he does are

starting to break up the group.

Rachel and the others know that time is running out. The newest battle

against the Yeerks is the most important one yet. And it's not one that will

wait. Winning this fight could mean slowing down the invasion. But no one

knows what to do with David. Because the newest Animorph is more than

just a little problem. He's deadly...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------------
Animorphs #23: The Pretender
Someone's looking for Tobias. Someone who says she's his long-lost cousin.

Tobias isn't sure the person is telling the truth. But she's really nice, and

knows a lot about him. And what she tells Tobias definitely gets his

attention.

It seems a lawyer has discovered Tobias's father's last will and testament.

So, Tobias needs to attend the reading. His "cousin" even offers to go

along. But something just doesn't feel quite right. That's when Tobias, the

other Animorphs, and Ax decide to do a little checking on this "cousin." And

what they discover will change the rest of Tobias's life...
<Read a sample chapter>

--------------
Animorphs #23: The Pretender
Someone's looking for Tobias. Someone who says she's his long-lost cousin.

Tobias isn't sure the person is telling the truth. But she's really nice, and

knows a lot about him. And what she tells Tobias definitely gets his

attention.

It seems a lawyer has discovered Tobias's father's last will and testament.

So, Tobias needs to attend the reading. His "cousin" even offers to go

along. But something just doesn't feel quite right. That's when Tobias, the

other Animorphs, and Ax decide to do a little checking on this "cousin." And

what they discover will change the rest of Tobias's life...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #24: The Suspicion
Cassie, the other Animorphs, and Ax have a few little problems. A few very

little problems. Actually, the problems call themselves Helmacrons. They're

less than an inch tall, and they're pretty upset at Cassie. They believe she

stole their ship. Cassie thought it was just a toy, and gave it to charity. Now

the Helmacrons want it back.

So the Animorphs and Ax have a new dilemma. Because the Helmacrons

have their own secret weapon: They can shrink other beings down to their

size. And, if they don't get their ship back soon, everyone on the planet is in

for a little surprise...
<<Read a sample chapter>
----------
Animorphs #25 The Extreme
Marco, the other Animorphs, and Ax have managed to find out where the

Yeerks are planning to build their next ground-based Kandrona. That's a

good thing. The location is supposed to be somewhere near the North Pole.

That's a bad thing. The Animorphs and Ax know that the Yeerks are a "cold

-blooded" species, but this is a little nuts! Who wants to be near the North

Pole without Arctic morphs -- and wearing spandex?

Even so, the kids know that if the Yeerks succeed with their plan, Earth is

pretty much done for. And Marco, the other Animorphs, and Ax aren't quite

ready to give up the fight...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #26: The Attack
The Animorphs have met the Ellimist. He "helped" to save the kids when

they were about to be eaten by a Taxxon. He "helped" to free two Hork-

Bajir and restored Tobias's morphing ability. But, even though the Ellimist

has enormous power, he is not all-powerful. He has an enemy. The Crayak.

So, the Crayak and the Ellimist decide that a battle will prove their ultimate

power. But they don't intend to fight each other. The Ellimist will choose the

Animorphs, Ax, and Erek, the Chee; the Crayak will choose his own army.

But if the Animorphs lose they will be erased from the universe altogether.

And there'll be no one left to fight the Yeerks...
<Read a sample chapter>

----------
Animorphs #27: The Exposed
The Animorphs and Ax have one true ally in their battle against the Yeerks:

the Chee. So, when they discover that the Chee -- including their friend,

Erek -- are in trouble, they have no choice but to help.

But the Chee's problem is much deeper than anything the kids could have

imagined. It's hidden in the ocean. So far down that no human has ever

travelled there -- and survived. And the Animorphs realize what will happen

if Visser Three discovers the valuable secrets of the Chee. One of which is

the Animorphs...
<Read a sample chapter>

----------------
Animorphs #28: The Experiment
The Yeerks have decided to try a little experiment. They've decided that if

they can develop a way to make people more "willing" to be infested, they

can speed up Earth's invasion. So, the Yeerks try to invent a substance that

will take away the human ability to make a decision. A substance that will

eliminate free will.

Now the Animorphs and Ax are not only faced with trying to slow down the

Yeerks' invasion, but they also have to try and put an end to the genetic

testing on a small group of humans. This time there's only one chance to

stop the Yeerks. And if anything goes wrong, it's all over...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #29: The Sickness
Something is very wrong with Ax. He's sick. And the Animorphs don't know

what to do about it. They can't take him to the hospital. They don't know

how to contact the Andalite home world. And Ax is dying.

Cassie and the other Animorphs come up with a plan. But it involves finding

a new way into the Yeerk pool. There's just one problem: Jake, Rachel,

Tobias, and Marco come down with Ax's sickness. And now, for the first

time, Cassie is on her own...
<Read a sample chapter>

---------
Animorphs #30: The Reunion
Marco's mom is back. But she's not Visser One anymore. Marco's not even

sure if she's still a Controller. But he's determined to find out. No matter

what it takes. No matter what might happen. Marco wants his mom back.

Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax realize that Marco is under some serious

stress. And that the situation with his mom could very well jeopardize

everything they've worked for. Now they also have to wonder if Marco will

be the one to give away the secret of the Animorphs...
<Read a sample chapter>

------------
Animorphs #31: The Conspiracy
Jake's grandfather has died. It blows the family away -- especially Jake's

mom. So Jake's parents decide they should all travel to the grandfather's

home to help with the arrangements. In another state. For three or four

days.

This is a very big problem for Jake's brother, Tom. He can't be away from

the Yeerk pool for that long. So Tom refuses to go -- and his father insists.

But Tom's Yeerk will do anything to survive. Including making his father less

of a problem.

Now Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax have to find a way to protect his

father without Tom discovering their secret. And without having to choose

between his father's life...and Tom's.
<Read a sample chapter>

----------
Animorphs #32: The Separation
Rachel is falling apart. Literally. Her newest morph has the ability to

regenerate its limbs, but when Rachel demorphs there's a lot more Rachel

than when she started out. One more Rachel, to be exact. Rachel is an okay

person to have around. But two could be considered overkill. Especially two

Rachels with completely opposite personalities: one is pathetically weak;

one is super strong and super nasty.

Now the Animorphs have to figure out a way to put Rachel back together

again. Because if it's up to the "twins," Rachel the weak will surrender to

Visser Three. Rachel the super bold will try to single-handedly take him

down. and twice the trouble may be twice as much as the other Animorphs

and Ax can handle...
<Read a sample chapter>

-----------
Animorphs #33: The Illusion
Tobias, the other Animorphs, and Ax already have a few problems: saving

the world, keeping their identities secret, finishing their homework. Now they

have one more thing to add to the list. The Yeerks have discovered a way to

cause a person to demorph. And with this new device Visser Three plans on

capturing "the Andalite bandits."

Now what? The Animorphs and Ax realize they have to get rid of the device

-- or be captured by the Yeerks. And the risk of getting caught is very high.

That's when Tobias comes up with the only possible plan. Someone has to

acquire Ax...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #34: The Prophecy
There is a chance for the free Hork-Bajir on Earth to start their own

rebellion against the Yeerks. They have the numbers, but they don't have

the weapons. And they've learned from the last surviving Arn -- the race

that created the Hork-Bajir -- that Aldrea, daughter of Prince Seerow,

knew the location of a stolen Yeerk vessel.

Unfortunately, the only way to recover the ship is to ask Aldrea herself --

and she's dead. But the Arn has Aldrea's persona stored. And Cassie,

Rachel, or Toby Hamee are the closest match. The only problem is that

once Aldrea gets into one of their minds, she may not want to come out...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #35: The Proposal
Marco already knows he has a few problems: the constant battle with the

Yeerks; finding out his mother was infested...and is now Visser One. The

leader of the Yeerk invasion of Earth. But things are about to get even

weirder. Marco's father is thinking of getting married again.

Meanwhile, the Animorphs and Ax have other things to worry about. It seems

the Yeerks are trying harder than ever to get people into The Sharing. Now

the kids have to find a way to slow down recruitment. But Marco's personal

stress is causing him to morph into creatures that don't exist. Creatures the

Yeerks are sure to notice...and attack...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #36: The Mutation
Visser Three is still trying to find a way to reach the Pemalite ship. The ship

that was hidden thousands of feet below the ocean's surface. A ship

containing technology so advanced that it is superior to anything even the

Andalites have built. And this time, the visser plans to find the ship so he

can use the power to complete Earth's invasion.

Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax acquire additional deep-sea morphs in

order to stop the visser's plan. But while trying to destroy the Yeerk ship,

the kids make a startling discovery: an underwater civilization. Have the

kids discovered Atlantis...or is it just another trap?
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #37: The Weakness
When Jake has to leave town for a family thing, the other Animorphs and Ax

figure life will pretty much be normal until he gets back. But when Tobias

discovers Visser Three's newest feeding place, the kids decide they have to

check it out.

But there's no assigned leader. Now Rachel, Tobias, Cassie, Marco, and Ax

have another problem: Who will be the best one for the job? Because being

in charge isn't just guts and glory. It's about making decisions that will mean

the difference between life...and death.
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #38: The Arrival
Andalites have finally arrived on Earth. The Animorphs and Ax now have

allies willing to fight against the Yeerk invasion. But there are only four

Andalites. Not nearly enough to defeat thousands of Yeerks. Not enough to

stop humans from being infected.

So, everyone agrees that the battle must continue. But the Andalites don't

want to fight alongside humans. They feel their skills will be less than

adequate. And they demand that Ax choose a side. Will Ax stay with his

friends...or stand with his people?
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #39: The Hidden
The Yeerks have discovered and repaired a damaged Helmacron ship. They

know of its morph-seeking capabilities, and they plan to use the ship to

capture the "Andalite bandits." And to find Elfangor's blue cube. The one

that gave the kids the ability to morph.

Cassie, the other Animorphs, and Ax are in a pretty bad situation because

they can't leave the cube in one place, they can't morph without being

discovered, and they have to keep moving. It looks like this may be a battle

the visser can't lose...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #40: The Other
Ax and the Animorphs have always believed he was the only non-infested

Andalite on Earth. That he alone survived the terrible battle between his

people and the Yeerks.

Until Now.

There were other survivors. Other Andalites. And they're here on Earth.

Trying to keep a low profile. Trying to find a way to defeat Visser Three.

Trying -- like Ax and the Animorphs -- to stay alive until help finally comes.

If help finally comes...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #41: The Familiar
Jake is just a normal kid. Well, as normal as possible considering he can

morph animals, and he's in a war against parasitic aliens. But as

unbelievable as it sounds, something even stranger has happened. One

morning Jake wakes up, and he's twenty-five years old.

Okay. Maybe it's a nightmare. Or maybe Jake's just lost it for a while and

misplaced a few years. And there's another problem. The world Jake-the-kid

went to sleep in has changed. It's ruled by the Yeerks. Jake has to find out

if the other Animorphs and Ax are still around. Still somehow fighting. Or if

he's really on his own...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #42: The Journey
Sometimes your worst problems are the ones you can't actually see. Like

the Helmacrons. These less-than-an-inch-high aliens are back, and they

want the morphing cube more than ever. Obviously, Rachel, the other

Animorphs and Ax can't let them take the cube. But when Rachel tries to

stop the Helmacrons from stealing it, Marco gets in the way and ends up

with tiny aliens, well, up his nose.

Rachel and the others can't let the Helmacrons stay inside Marco's head.

They're armed, and could cause serious damage. So the Animorphs and Ax

come up with a plan to evict the Helamcrons from their new residence. But

it involves a shrinking ray and the obvious: Marco's nose...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #43: The Test
Tobias, the other Animorphs, and Ax have seen things so bizarre that no

sane person would believe their story. No one would believe that aliens have

taken over the Earth, and are in the process of infesting as many humans as

possible. No one could believe the battles and missions and losses these six

kids have had to deal with. And it's not over yet.

Tobias has been captured by the same human-Controller that nearly

tortured him to death once before. She claims that now she's a part of the

Yeerk peace movement. That she just needs a favor. Tobias isn't sure what

to believe, but he knows that if the Animorphs and Ax don't find him soon,

what he believes won't matter anymore...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #44: The Unexpected
The Animorphs have been split up before. And they've had to fight battles

without one another. But this time is very different. Not only is Cassie

totally alone. She's managed to find herself in Australia. In the rural

Outback. The other Animorphs and Ax don't even know she's there.

Cassie doesn't have any idea where she's going, or if she can even survive

the rugged terrain. But she does know she has to get to a town or village

and contact her family and friends. Because she just realized that there's

someone else who is also new to the Outback. Visser Three.
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #45: The Revelation
Things were already really weird. Fighting aliens. Battling to have Earth. And

still trying to be normal. Marco, the other Animorphs, and Ax are almost

used to it. But things are changing. The Yeerk invasion of Earth started out

passively. Secretly. But now, everything seems to be stepped up. Even

Marco's father is talking about some top secret project at his job. Something

about developing Zero-space...

Marco doesn't even know whether his father is a Controller. But he does

know he's not going to let the Yeerks win this one. They've already got his

mother. And Marco will do anything it takes to save his father. Anything...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #46: The Deception
The Animorphs and Ax have managed to contract the Andalite home world.

But the battle is far from over. Visser Two has arrived to Earth, and he' not

happy about the state of things. He decides the best way to take over Earth

is to have the humans destroy the people and the land the Yeerks don't

need. He decides to start World War III.

Ax and his friends know that Visser Two means business and there will

probably only be two ways to keep him from destroying everything they

know: Find a way to stop the war. Or find a way to stop him...forever...
<>Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #47: The Resistance
The Animorphs and Ax have to make the most important decision they've

ever had to make: Do they continue to fight the Yeerks in secret, or is it

time to let everyone know there is a resistance? That the Animorphs exist.

And that Earth does stand a small chance against the invasion.

Jake knows that either choice is a major one. Not one that some kid should

be responsible for. But he's getting tired of the pressure. So, even though he

realizes that other Animorphs need him to be strong, he doesn't feel that

way. In fact, he feels just the opposite. And Jake knows if he starts to lose

it the Animorphs are done...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #48: The Return
David, the "sixth Animorph," is back. When the Animorphs and Ax decided to

give another human being the power to morph, it was one their biggest

mistakes. David tried to destroy all of them - and almost succeeded. Rachel

and the others thought they'd seen the last of him when they trapped David

as a nothlit. Leaving him on a deserted island to live out his days as a rat...

They were wrong.

Rachel knows what a threat David is. He's cunning and dangerous. Worst of

all, he knows their secrets. Now he's captured Rachel as part of his plan to

take over everything. David wants power. Money. But more than anything,

he wants revenge...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #49: The Diversion
The Yeerks are finally starting to realize that the "Andalite bandits" are

probably not aliens at all. They're finally starting to realize that maybe

they've been dealing with humans all along. And no one - especially the

newly appointed Visser One - is happy with this knowledge. Not happy at all.

When Tobias, the other Animorphs, and Ax realize that the Yeerks are about

to find them, its by accident. But that doesn't make the discovery any less

serious. Because in a war, one side wins. And one side loses...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #50: The Ultimate
Really big trouble is an understatement these days. The war between the

Yeerks and the Animorphs is full on - and it's definitely going to get worse.

But Cassie, the other Animoprhs, and Ax have a lot more going on than just

trying to stay alive. Now they've got to actively protect their families and

the free Hork Bajir. And they no longer believe they can do it alone. The

Yeerks are just too powerful.

So Cassie and the others have to ask themselves a very important question:

Is it time to increase their numbers? They all remember too well what

happened with David - the Animorph gone bad. But this time do they really

have a choice?
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #51: The Absolute
The Yeerks have taken over units of the National Guard with plans to infest

all of its officers and soldiers. The plan seems to be to step things up―use

the Guard to prepare for an all-out war on Earth. The Animorphs couldn't

be less prepared. They're living with the free Hork-Bajir colony, Jake is

depressed, and worst of all, the morphing cube is in the hands of the enemy.

Marco and the others know they need to take serious action to stop the

Yeerk infiltration of the Guard. They decide to approach the governor―but

they don't know if she's a controller or not. If she is, they're walking right

into enemy hands. If she's not, the Animorphs are finally going public with

their secret. And no one knows which situation is worse...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #52: The Sacrifice
The war between the Yeerks and the Animorphs is still raging. There are no

more secrets - but there are plenty of lies. The kids are fighting harder than

they ever thought they could. And they’re about to make the biggest

decision they’ve ever had to face. A decision that may eventually break

them all.

Ax and the Animorphs have known that the ultimate destruction of the

Yeerk pool will give them a huge chance to take back Earth. And they've

figured out a way to do it. But there’s no way to destroy the pool without

destroying everyone else that may be there. And there’s no more time to

think about it. There’s only yes or no...
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #53: The Answer
The battle is still raging, and it’s out-and-out war. Jake, the other

Animorphs, and Ax have found a way to slow the Yeerks down, but now the

Yeerks have decided the best way to win is to just destroy everything and

everyone who gets in their way.

Just when things look more than hopeless, Jake and the others discover

help where they least expected: Taxxons. Creatures so foul and heartless it’

s almost hard to believe that they are capable of having any feelings. But

Jake and the others soon discover that the Taxxon resistance has its own

problems with the Yeerks. And, for once, it looks like Earth may have a

chacnce....
<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #54: The Beginning
It began with 6. It will end with 5. No one ever thought it would be come to

this. Jake, Rachel, Tobias, Cassie, Marco, and Ax know that even if they

could have warned people in the beginning, no one would have believed their

story. A story about an invasion of parasitic aliens. So, for all this time,

Jake, the other Animorphs, and Ax have secretly held the Yeerks at bay.

But those days are over. It’s come down to a final battle between the

Yeerks and Animorphs. And no one knows who will win, lose, or live...
<Read a sample chapter>


VISSER
Her human name is Eva. There was a time when she had a loving husband

and a son, Marco. When she had a wonderful career. But that was before she

was infested by Edriss 562. Before the invasion of Earth. Now, Edriss 562

lives in Eva's head and controls her every movement. And through Eva,

Edriss has become the highest-ranking general in the Yeerk empire,

surpassing even her arch rival, Visser Three. She is Visser One.

But, it has become known that Visser One's tactics for attaining her current

position were less than acceptable -- even to the Yeerks. Now she is on

trial for treason. If she's found innocent she'll continue to rule. But if she's

found guilty, she'll lose her life -- and possibly the life of her host, Eva.

Which will mean that Marco will never, ever see his mother again...
<Read a sample chapter>



The Andalite Chronicles
His name is Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul.

An Andalite warrior-prince. The one who gave five young humans the ability

to morph into any animal they touch. They are still out there, fighting an

evil so powerful there isn't a moment that goes by when they can actually

feel safe. Their story continues.

But this is how it all began.
<Read a sample chapter>

The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The unforgettable story of the fierce Hork-Bajir wars in a time before the

Animorphs...

Dak Hamee is a unique Hork-Bajir. His people call him a "seer." He learns

more quickly and completely than the rest of his docile race. Hork-Bajir like

him are born once a generation.

Aldrea is a young Andalite. Daughter of the notorious Prince Seerow. It is

only after she and her family are sent to the Hork-Bajir home world that she

begins to fight the Yeerks -- and, with Dak's help, ultimately discovers their

hideous plan.

Now available in paperback!
<Read a sample chapter>

The Hork-Bajir Chronicles
The unforgettable story of the fierce Hork-Bajir wars in a time before the

Animorphs...

Dak Hamee is a unique Hork-Bajir. His people call him a "seer." He learns

more quickly and completely than the rest of his docile race. Hork-Bajir like

him are born once a generation.

Aldrea is a young Andalite. Daughter of the notorious Prince Seerow. It is

only after she and her family are sent to the Hork-Bajir home world that she

begins to fight the Yeerks -- and, with Dak's help, ultimately discovers their

hideous plan.

Now available in paperback!
<Read a sample chapter>

The Ellimist Chronicles
He is called the Ellimist. A being with the ability to alter space and time. A

being with a power that will never be fully understood. He is the reason

Elfangor came to Earth. He is the reason the Earth now has a fighting

chance. And though his actions never seem quite right or wrong, you can be

certain they are never, ever what anyone expects.

This is the beginning and the middle of the story. A story that needs to be

told in order to understand what might happen to the future. The future of

the Animorphs. The future of humanity. The future of Earth.

He is called the Ellimist. And this is his story...
<Read a sample chapter>

MEET THE STARS
An Authorized Biography
by Randi Reisfeld
and Marie Morreale

The best-selling book series is now a hit live-action TV show!! And now,

you'll get the chance to find out about your favorite characters, their

stories on and off the set, and even get the real deal on what it was like to

train and work with the animals.
Who accidentally stuck his fingers up a tiger's nose? Who fed a hawk a

chicken leg? Who was completely "terrified" auditioning in front of a

television camera? Who likes a certain type of "Turkey"? And whose

funniest moment on the set involved another actor "flying" (sort of)?
Get the answers to these questions and more. But remember to be careful

who you share the info with. You know who is still out there...
<Read a sample chapter>

MEGAMORPHS #1 - The Andalite's Gift
We never should have done it. But we needed a break. You know, some time

off from the superhero stuff. A chance to act like normal kids. Well -- as

normal as four kids who can morph, a hawk, and an alien can be. Everything

should have been cool.

Now Rachel is missing. And there's this...this thing that's after us. But it's

not up to me to tell the whole story. Tobias, Cassie, Marco, and Ax were

there, too. Even Rachel has some info to add. So go ahead and check this

out. And remember not to tell anyone what we're about to tell you. It could

mean the difference between life and death. Or worse...
<Read a sample chapter>

MEGAMORPHS #2
We could blame everything that happened on Marco. He was the one who

heard about the downed submarine. He was the one who thought we should

check it out. And everyone knows that if Marco's up to a challenge, I'm

definitely there.

Everything was going fine. Until the explosion. An explosion that blows us

millions of years back in time. Back to the age of dinosaurs. Now Tobias,

Cassie, Marco, Ax, Jake and I are fighting for our lives with every step we

take. But that's not our biggest problem. Our biggest problem is we have no

idea how to get back to our own time ...
<Read a sample chapter>

MEGAMORPHS 3
We found out who Visser Four is. And he has found the Time Matrix. The

machine Elfangor had hidden in the abandoned construction site. The same

place we met him on a night none of us will ever forget. Especially me. Now

Visser Four has the Matrix, and he plans to use it to become Visser One.

But Jake, Rachel, Cassie, Marco, Ax and I can't let that happen. We can't

let him alter time so that the Yeerks will win the invasion. So we're prepared

to make the ultimate sacrifice. And, ultimately one of us will lose this fight...
<>Read a sample chapter>

MEGAMORPHS 4
What would you do if you had the opportunity to change your life? Not just

where you live or who you hang out with, but your past, present, and future?

Sounds like it might be pretty cool, right? Well, that's what Jake thought. He

thought it might be easier if the Animorphs had never existed. If they'd

never met Elfangor. If they all had the chance to be "normal" kids.

Jake gets his wish.

But things aren't quite as simple as they seem. Just because the Animorphs

no longer exist doesn't mean the Yeerks no longer exist. Except now Jake,

Rachel, Tobias, Cassie, and Marco can't morph. They don't even know the

Yeerks are out there. And it's not such a wonderful life...
<Read a sample chapter>

ALTERNAMORPHS: The First Journey
Hey. We're sure you already know the deal, but in case you don't, there's an

alien invasion going on. Right here. Right now. We're not talking about little

green guys. And no, we're not nuts. But this invasion is the reason we have

the power to morph into any animal we touch. To acquire it's DNA. To try

and battle these Yeerks -- that's what they call themselves.

But things have gotten worse. And we need backup. A new Animorph. We've

tried this once before and it didn't work out. At all. We're gonna try again.

So, since you know what we're up against, can we trust you?

Are you ready to be an Animorph?
<Read a sample chapter>

ALTERNAMORPHS: The Next Passage
It's time for our next mission and it's up to you to decide whether you want

to join us. You probably already realize that each mission - each battle -

could mean infestation, or worse. You probably already realize that we win

about as many as we lose. But we are managing to hold the Yeerks back, and

one more person could make all the difference.

Just so you know, there are going to be a lot of decisions to make. The right

answers keep us alive. The wrong ones -- well that's pretty obvious. So

what do you think?

Are you ready to be an Animorph?
<Read a sample chapter>

CLOSE WINDOW


My name is Rachel.
Who am I?

Just a kid. A middle school kid with divorced parents and two little sisters. I

go to school, do my homework, hang out with my friends. If you saw me I bet

you wouldn't look twice. Just another suburban mall rat.

Nothing special.

Funny how that sounds like an insult.

I bet you hate being ordinary. I bet you long for something to make you feel

different and special. You're probably just waiting for something exciting to

happen to you.

Be careful what you wish for.

One night something exciting did happen to me. I was given a weapon. A

wonderful and awful weapon. The ability to morph, to change from an

average kid into an animal. Into a bird or insect.

Only five human beings possess this weapon. Me; Cassie, my best friend;

Jake, my cousin and our leader; Marco, our own personal clown; and Tobias,

our lost soul. Five humans unique in all the universe. Guess that makes us

pretty special.

But along with the power to morph came a mission: Save the world. I'm not

kidding. This is no joke.

See, Earth is being invaded by the Yeerks, aliens with weak, repulsive

bodies. Slugs. Parasites.

The Yeerks want our human bodies. Our strong legs and hands. Our sensitive

ears, mouths, and eyes. They are taking over human hosts, entering their

brains, controlling them, rendering them utterly helpless.

So we fight. The five of us humans and Ax, an alien kid. An Andalite. The

Andalites battle the Yeerks throughout the galaxy. A war on too many

fronts. One day the Andalites may send reinforcements to Earth. Until then,

we fight alone.

Each battle changes us. Transforms us on the inside as much as on the

outside.

War is not a video game. In a real war, you make desperate decisions and

deal with desperate consequences. You spill blood and your blood gets

spilled. You brush up against death. You change. You're warped until ever

being average and ordinary again is an impossible dream.

What would you do if you were given the chance to be different, unique,

extraordinary? If someone offered you the ability to morph, would you take

it? And if you did take it, how long do you think you would survive?

This is your chance to find out.

But I'm warning you. Think about it first. Think deeply. Ask yourself: Can you

handle it?

CLOSE WINDOW | NEXT BOOK



我喜欢千万法，我用压码和右脑给千万别学英语一个杠杆，撬起零基础到达自由王国；压码只有一个指标：通过滞后提高速度，速度就是质量,给它注入一个加速器，就会产生一个个奇迹.
[1 楼] | Posted:2005-02-12 12:41|

<Read a sample chapter>

Animorphs #1: The Invasion

Sometimes weird things happen to people. Ask Jake. He may tell you about

the night he and his friends saw the strange light in the sky. He may even

tell you about what happened when they realized the "light" was only a

plane -- from another planet.

Here's where Jake's story gets a little weird. He and his friends are told the

human race is under attack, but they're given the chance to fight back.

Now Jake, Rachel, Cassie, Tobias and Marco have the power to morph into

any animal they choose. And they must use that power to outsmart an evil

that is greater than anything the world has ever seen...

<Read a sample chapter>

------

It isn't painful. Morphing, I mean.

I petted Homer for a while, feeling like a complete and total fool. "This is

the stupidest thing I have ever done," I told Tobias.


"Look, you have to concentrate. At least, I did. I mean, I formed this mental

picture of Dude, right? I thought about becoming him.


"I see. So I have to, like, meditate on becoming a dog."


"That's right. You have to think about it. You have to want it."


Normally I would have figured he was nuts. But I had just seen him turn into

a cat. So if he was nuts, so was I.


I thought about becoming Homer. As I stroked his fur I formed a picture in

my mind of me becoming Homer. Homer became weirdly quiet while I did it.

Like he was asleep, only his eyes were open.


"Just like Dude," Tobias commented. "I think the process kind of puts the

animal in a trance or something."


"He's just scared because he thinks his master is a looney tune." I

continued stroking Homer's fur and concentrating, and Homer continued to

lie very still. "Okay, now what?" I asked Tobias.


"Now we better put Homer outside. He might get slightly freaked by

watching you turn into him."


It took Homer about ten seconds to come out of his trance. But then he

jumped up, normal, hyperactive Homer again. I put him outside in the yard.


Tobias was sitting patiently when I got back, just waiting. "Give it a try, "

he urged me. "Think about it. Want it."


I took a deep breath. I closed my eyes. I recalled the picture of Homer I'd

formed in my mind. I thought about becoming Homer.


I opened my eyes. "Bow wow," I said, laughing. "Guess it didn't work for me,

Tobias."


The back of my hand itched and I scratched it.


"Jake?" Tobias said.


"What?"


"Look at your hand. "


I looked at my hand. It was covered with orange fur.


I jumped about a foot, straight up in the air. "Ohh! Ohh!" I stared at my

hand. The fur had stopped growing.


"Don't be scared," Tobias advised. "Go with it. Now you've stopped the

morph. You have to concentrate."


"My hand!" I said. "Fur!"


"Yeah, and your ears . . . " Tobias said.


I ran to the mirror over my dresser. My ears had moved. They had slid up

the side of my head, and were definitely larger than they should be.


"Go on, it's so cool!" Tobias said.


"Cool? It's...it's...creepy. It's weird. It's... I mean, look at my hands! I have

fur!"


"You have to do this," Tobias said.


"I don't have to do anything," I said sullenly.


Tobias nodded. "Okay, you're right. You don't have to do this. You can just

forget what we saw last night. And forget what we know. And as the Yeerks

take over more and more people, you can just ignore it. We' can all just go

along and grow up in a world where human beings are nothing but bodies to

be used by murdering aliens."


Okay, when he put it that way it didn't sound like a great option.


"Come on, " Tobias urged.


I swallowed hard. I closed my eyes. I thought of Homer. Of being Homer.


I felt the itchiness again, and when I opened my eyes, there was fur growing

on my arms. And fur growing out of my face. And fur curling up from under

my collar. My legs itched and I realized they were growing fur, too.


My bones...well, they didn't exactly hurt, but they did feel very strange. You

know when you go to the dentist and he gives you Novocaine so the drill

doesn't really hurt, but you know it should hurt? I guess that's what it's like.


My bones shortened. I could feel my backbone stretching as it extended out

into a tail. There was a scraping sound as my knees suddenly reversed

direction. I toppled forward, no longer able to walk upright.


When my hands hit the floor they weren't exactly hands anymore. The

fingers were gone. All that was left were short, stubby nails.


My face bulged out. My eyes drew closer together.


Tobias got up and tilted the mirror down so I could see myself.


I watched the final transformation as the last patches of my pink human

flesh disappeared. And the tail - my tail - sprouted to its full length.


I was a dog. It was insane. But just the same. I was a dog.


I knew I should be scared by all this, only I wasn't. I was ecstatic. I was

giddy. I was thrilled. Happiness just washed over me. Happiness filled me up.


I breathed in through my ridiculously long nose and wow! Wow! The smells.

Oh, man, you have no idea! I breathed in and right away I knew my mom was

toasting a waffle in the kitchen. And I knew Tobias had walked through the

territory of a big male dog. And I knew things I couldn't even explain in

human words. It was like being blind all your life and then suddenly you can

see.


I ran over to Tobias and sniffed his shoe. I wanted a better idea of who that

big male dog was. From the scent of his urine picked up by Tobias's shoe I

got a sort of picture of him. See, Homer knew him. His owners called him

Streak. He was neutered, like me. He spent most of his time in his yard, but

he broke out sometimes by digging under his fence. He got a mix of canned

and dry food. Purina. No table scraps, unlike me.


All this information made me happy all over again, and I had to wag my tail. I

looked up at Tobias. He looked tall and strange and not very colorfuI. I

wasn't all that interested in looking at stuff. Smelling things was way better.


INTRUDER!


There was a noise in the yard. A dog! An unknown dog in MY yard. An

INTRUDER!


I ran to the window and perched against it and cut loose.


"Rrrawf! Rrawf rrawf! rrawfrrawfrrawfrrawf!"


I barked as loud as I could. No WAY some unknown dog was just going to walk

through MY yard.


"Jake, get a grip," Tobias said. "That's Homer, out there."


Homer? What? But I was ...


I tucked my tail between my legs. What was going on?


"Jake, listen to me," Tobias said. "It's just what happened to me when I

morphed into a cat. The dog brain is part of your brain now. You have to

deal with it."


<But...there's a dog in MY yard.>


"That's Homer, Jake. You are Jake. You're just in a body copied from

Homer's DNA. That's the real Homer out there. You put him out there.

Focus. You are Jake. Jake."


I took several deep breaths. The smells! Oh, boy, there was this one smell I

couldn't quite -


Focus, Jake! I ordered myself. Focus!


Slowly I calmed the dog part of my mind.


Let go of the smells. Let go of the sound of a dog out in your yard.


It wasn't easy, that first time. Being a dog is so completely amazing. For one

thing, there's nothing halfway about it. You're never sort of happy. You're

HAPPY! You're never sort of bummed. You're totally, completely bummed.

And boy, when you get hungry in dog form, you are nuts on the subject of

food.


There was a knock on my bedroom door. Yes, my bedroom door. I knew who I

was again. I was Jake. Jake with four legs, a tail and a snout, but Jake.


The knocking seemed incredibly loud to my dog ears.


"Jake, you got Homer in there with you?" My brother Tom's voice. "Mom's

on the phone, stop him yapping --"


He opened the door and stepped in. He looked around, confused.


"Who are you?" he demanded of Tobias.


"I'm Tobias. I'm a friend of Jake's."


"Well, where is he?"


"Oh . . . he's around, " Tobias said.


Tom looked down at me. There was a strange smell about him. My dog brain

couldn't quite identify it. It was an unsettling, dangerous smell. And

somehow, in my own mind, I heard the echo of a laugh. A very human laugh I

had heard the night before as Visser Three swallowed the Andalite whole.


"Bad dog," Tom said to me. "You keep quiet. Bad dog." And then he left.


I was devastated. I wasn't a bad dog. Not really. I was just barking because

some other dog was in MY yard. Bad dog? I was a bad dog? No, I wanted to

be a good dog. I crept into the corner, utterly miserable.


Tobias knelt down and patted my head.


When he scratched me behind the ears, I felt a little better.

Animorphs #2: The Visitor




I was ready to fight. I was pumped. Kill or be killed.

It is so cool when you feel the razor-sharp claws sliding out of your

delicate-looking pink pads.


"Rachel, take a pill, girl, it's just Tobias," Cassie said soothingly. "Tobias? I

think maybe you'd better stay away, " she called up to the sky. "Cats are

genetically programmed to be afraid of large birds."


She was right. The shadow of Tobias scared me pretty good. It was strange,

because it was a fear I shared with the shrew.


But it was a different type of fear than the shrew's. This was more like I was

angry, too. Only that wasn't quite it, either. I guess it wasn't a real emotion

at all. Basically, when I'd hissed I was just trying to communicate. And the

message I was trying to communicate was, "Don't mess with me. You may be

bigger than me, you may scare me, you may make me run away, but if I have

to I am ready to fight."


That was my whole cat message to the world: Don't mess with me. Don't get

in my way, don't try to touch me if I don't want to be touched, don't try to

keep me from getting what I want.


I was self-contained. I was complete. I didn't need anything but myself. It

seemed lonely to my human self, but at the same time, it was all very calm

somehow.


<I'm okay,> I said. <I think I'm pretty much in control.>


"What's it like?" Cassie asked.


<It's like...You know those old cowboy movies with Clint Eastwood? He's a

gunslinger and he walks into the saloon and everyone kind of gets out of his

way? And how he's not really looking for trouble, but you'd better not make

him mad? That's what it's like. It's like I'm Clint Eastwood.>


"Can you do this, do you think?" Jake asked me.


<Oh, yeah. I can do anything.>


"Don't let the cat's arrogance get you in trouble, " Marco advised. "Keep a

little of your good old human fear." He paused. "Oh, I forgot, mighty Rachel

doesn't have any good old human fear. So here's what you do: Borrow some

of my good old human fear. I have plenty to spare."


"He's right, Rachel," Cassie agreed. "Keep focused. Between your own

natural attitude and the cat's 'tude, you could get cocky."


I cast a glance back toward the mouse. He had broken into the nut at last. I

could kill him. I was sure of that. He was a plump little mouse, and I would

catch him easily. But I wasn't hungry. So he'd get to live a while longer.


<No problem,> I said.


"We're here if you get into a mess," Cassie reassured me.


<I'll meow if I need help. Don't worry. I'm in control now. it'll be fine.>


But the truth is, I was lying, just a little. See, I wasn't completely in control

of the cat. For some reason I didn't want to completely control the cat. I

kind of liked his arrogance. It made me feel more sure of myself. And despite

what the others thought about me, I needed all the confidence I could get.


"The morph clock is ticking," Cassie said. "It's quarter of eight. Remember

that."


I headed at an easy trot down the sidewalk toward the Chapman home. As

soon as I started moving I thought, Oh, man, if I could just keep some of this

for my next gymnastics class.


It was like grace beyond any grace you can imagine as a human. I passed a

wooden fence. There was a railing up high, maybe three feet up. I looked up

at it and then, before I could even think about it, I leaped. My powerful hind

legs coiled up and released.


I sailed through the air. Three feet straight up, and I was an animal that

stood only about twelve or thirteen inches tall. It was the same as a human

being just leaping to the top of a two-story building.


And it was totally nothing. It was just automatic. I wanted to jump, so I did. I

wanted to stick the landing on a narrow two-inch-wide rail, and of course,

no problem.


Compared to a cat, the best gymnast who ever lived is like a big staggering

cow or something.


"Um, Rachel, what exactly are you doing?" Jake asked.


They were all standing there looking at me. I had totally forgotten they were

still around.


<Just practicing,> I said. I jumped back down to the grass. Okay, get the job

done first, I ordered myself sternly. You can worry about the Kitty Olympics

later.


I started again toward the house, but this time something forced me to stop.

It was a telephone pole. The smell that emanated from it was overpowering. I

went over to it. I sniffed it again and again in short snorts of air. The air was

trapped in a series of chambers above my palette. It would be held there

even while I went on breathing. That way I could get every possible bit of

information from that smell.


It was definitely a tom's scent. A tomcat had marked this pole by peeing on

it. He was a dominant cat. Very dominant. His smell made me nervous. Not

afraid, just a little less arrogant than I had been. If this cat appeared, I

would have to submit. I would have to make myself smaller and less

threatening and accept his dominance.


Or I could fight him and get my butt kicked.


It was just the way things were. It was all there in the smell of his urine,

where any cat could read it.


I resumed trotting toward the Chapman home.


<Rachel, are you sure you're in control?> Tobias's voice was in my head.

<Why did you stop to sniff that pole?>


<I figured I should look like a real cat,> I said. <I Was just playing the part.>


<If you say so,> he said doubtfully. <Just remember: It's fun being an animal

for awhile. Not so fun when it's permanent. The two-hour clock is ticking.

Tick tock.>


That got my attention. It was like a dash of cold water in my face. I focused

my human mind and took greater control over the cat's mind. But it wasn't

easy. The cat's mind did not even understand the notion of obeying.


So I used something the cat would respond to. I conjured up the memory of

the big tom's smell. That triggered the cat's submissiveness. I felt my part of

the collective mind grow larger.


<You're almost there,> Tobias said. <This is the right yard.>


<Yes, I know. My scent is everywhere. This whole area smells of me. This is

home. This is all mine.>


<Rachel, this is all Chapman's. And Chapman belongs to Visser Three. Don't

forget that.>


I trotted to the cat door. Chapman. Visser Three. Big deal. I was a

combination of Rachel and Fluffer. What did I care about Chapman and

Visser Three?


The light inside the house was bright. My eyes adjusted instantly. My nose

picked up the smell of cat food, too dry and old to interest me. I also

smelled the humans: Melissa, Mr. Chapman, and Ms. Chapman. Don't ask me

how I knew that what I smelled were those three people. I just knew.


I spotted a cockroach in the dust balls in the dark beneath the refrigerator.

No interest to me. Roaches made interesting scritchy noises sometimes, and

they were fun to watch run. But they smelled wrong. They were not prey.


Swift movements!


Feet. Human feet. I didn't bother looking up. It was Ms. Chapman.


High-pitched sounds coming from the motor of the refrigerator. They were

annoying. There were also the sounds of birds outside. They had a nest up

under the eaves.


Then the sound of Melissa's voice.


Where was she? I didn't see her anywhere. The sound was muffled.


I tried to focus. My ears moved to point toward the sound. It came from

above me. Above and far away.


She was in her bedroom, that's where. I couldn't hear the words clearly, but

I knew that she was muttering to herself.


I trotted across the kitchen floor. I knew - as Rachel - I knew I should be

afraid. But I couldn't be afraid. Everything here smelled like me. My scent

glands had left their marks all over - on that door, on that cupboard, on

that chair. It reassured me.


The big dominant tomcat's smell was not in here. No, there were no other

cats in here at all. Only human smells, and those were not very important.


I left the kitchen and paused at the corner between the hallway and the

family room. Chapman was there, in the living room. I could smell him. He

was just sitting on the couch. I glanced at him and walked on.


But then I stopped. My human brain sensed something wrong with the

picture. Chapman was just sitting on the couch. No TV. No music. He wasn't

reading a book or a newspaper. Just sitting.


I turned back to the kitchen. I looked up at Ms. Chapman. She was doing

something at the sink. Maybe washing dishes. No, she was cutting

vegetables. But again, no TV. No music. She wasn't humming to herself. She

wasn't talking to herself the way my mom does when she's working in the

kitchen.


Not right. Something was not right with either of the Chapmans.


I went back to the hallway. There were stairs leading up to the bedrooms.

From the hallway I could hear Melissa more clearly. I concentrated, trying to

ignore the fascinating sounds of the birds under the eaves. I focused on the

human sounds of Melissa's voice.


"...divided by the square root...no, wait. No, square root times...Is that

right?"


She was doing her homework. Her math homework, obviously.


Like I should be doing, I thought. I had a pang of guilt. Instead of doing my

homework, I was creeping around my friend's house spying on her and her

parents.


I tried to find a clock. I had to watch the time. At nine forty-five my two

hours would be up. I wanted to be out of morph and back in my normal body

long before then. Hopefully, I could still get home and do my math homework

and at least do some of the reading for social studies class.


I spotted a clock. It was over the mantel, between pictures of the Chapmans

and Melissa. The clock said three minutes until eight. I had plenty of time.


Sudden movement!


Oh, just Chapman standing up.


The cat part of me wasn't interested in Chapman one way or the other. But

I forced myself to pay attention. It was important to watch him. That was

why I was here.


Is he prey? The cat brain seemed to be asking.


Yes. Yes, I told the cat brain.


Chapman is our prey.

CLOSE WINDOW | NEXT BOOK

-------------
Animorphs #3: The Encounter




<Hork-Bajir!>

The first time I'd seen them was at the construction site. I was still fully

human then. It was while Visser Three was taunting the fallen Andalite. The

five of us had been cowering behind a low wall. A Hork-Bajir had been within

a few feet of us.


The Andalite told us they had once been a good people, the Hork-Bajir. That

despite their fearsome appearance, they were a gentle race.


But the Hork-Bajir were all Controllers now. They all carried the Yeerk slug

in their brains. And they were no longer gentle.


I made a sharp turn back. I had to warn the others. I passed over a group of

the Park Rangers, and swooped low enough to read one man's watch. My

friends had been in morph for more than an hour.


Great. Low on time, and the Hork-Bajir are here.


I soon spotted the wolf pack, still trotting along resolutely, never tiring.

Pausing only for Jake to pee.


I dived toward them. Just over their heads I pulled up suddenly.


"YOW!! Yip! Rrawr!"


They yelped and scampered around. Jake bared his fangs at me.


I came to rest on a decayed log.


Instantly, as if on command, the others started fanning out around me,

encircling me. The five of them were acting like a wolf pack surrounding

prey. In their own way they kind of reminded me of Hork-Bajir.


<Hey, it's just me, relax,> I said.


No answer. Jake snarled a brief command at one of the others.


Wait a minute. Five? Five wolves?


Jake, who wasn't really Jake, leaped at me.


Whoa!


Wolves don't usually hurt humans, but they will definitely eat a bird when

they're hungry enough. And one thing YOU don't ever want to see is a

hungry wolf, yellowed fangs bared, gold-brown eyes glaring, fur bristling,

coming at you.


I flapped my wings hard.


The big male wolf went shooting past. Barely. But the rest were all around

me!


I flapped again and got airborne, but just a few inches. I was skimming wildly

over the pine-needle carpet, flapping for all I was worth, with five

determined wolves hot on my tail.


SWOOOOM! I caught the tiniest headwind, but it was all I needed.


I was up! Up and out of there, while the wolves yowled and snapped their

powerful jaws in frustration below me.


Ten minutes later I found a second wolf pack. This time I counted. Four

wolves.


Still, I was cautious. <Is that you guys?>


<Who else would it be?> Marco asked.


<Don't ask,> I said. <Look, We have trouble.> I flapped down to a low branch

and rested my wings. I was still a little shaken up from my close call with the

wrong wolves.


<There's a lake just a little way ahead. It's crawling with Park Rangers who

aren't really Park Rangers.>


<Yeah, I thought I smelled water. And humans,> Cassie said.


<How do you know they aren't real Park Rangers?> Jake asked.


<Because real Park Rangers don't carry machine guns,> I said. <Plus, they

don't hang around with Hork-Bajir.>


<Hork-Bajir?> Cassie asked shakily. <You're sure?>


<Oh yeah,> I said. <It(long-s)s kind of hard to confuse them with anything

else. The Park Rangers are clearing out the area around the lake. They

hustled some campers out of there real fast. At gunpoint.>


<Hork-Bajir,> Marco said with distaste. <I really don't like those guys.>


Rachel asked, <This lake, it's in the same direction your big invisible ship

was moving?>


<It(long-s)s in a perfectly straight line,> I said. <Whatever that ship was, I'd

bet anything it was heading for that lake.>


<And judging by the way you say these Park-Ranger Controllers and Hork-

Bajir are acting, it's on its way again,> Marco said thoughtfully.


< I'll tell you one thing,> I said. <These guys all looked like they'd done this

many times before - you know what I mean? Like this was a real common

routine. They had it down.>


<We don't have a lot of time left in morph,> Jake said. <But it would be a

shame to miss the chance to find out what this is all about.>


<1 say go for it,> Rachel said.


<You always say go for it,> Marco muttered.


<If just once you would say, 'Hey, let's not do this,' it would make me so

happy.>


<You have-about forty minutes left,> I told them. <The lake is about five

minutes away.>


<Okay. Let's go. But in and out fast,> Jake warned. <Just enough to see

what's going on.>


They took off, with Jake in the lead. <Remember, just act like wolves.>


<Yeah, so if anyone sees the Three Little Pigs, don't forget to huff and

puff,> Marco said.


I went airborne again, but this time I stayed close by.


<Park Rangers just ahead,> I said.


<Yeah, I can definitely smell them now,> Rachel replied. <And hear them,

too.>


<Okay, look, wolves would try to steer clear of humans,> Cassie advised.

<So a little slinking would be perfectly normal.>


They moved in a cautious circle around the phony park Rangers. But I could

see that the Rangers had spotted them. They tensed up, then relaxed when

they saw it was just a wolf pack minding its own business.


I decided to get some altitude. Unfortunately, since there was no convenient

thermals, I had to flap my way up. I was a few thousand yards high, able to

see my friends and the lake, when I felt its presence again.


I looked up.


The invisible wave. The slight ripple in the fabric of the sky. It was there. It

was moving slowly overhead. Even more slowly than before.


And then, as I watched, it was invisible no more.

Animorphs #4: The Message



I was falling, falling, falling.
Falling into the sea.

Splash! I hit the water. But still I fell. Down and down and down through

blue-green, sunlit layers of water.

<I'm here,> a voice called to me. <I am here, I cannot survive much longer. If

you hear me...come. If you hear me...come.>

Suddenly I opened my eyes. I stared up at Jake's concerned face.

Glancing across the room, I saw Rachel with the telephone to her ear,

preparing to dial.

"She's awake!" Jake said.

"I'd better still call an ambulance," Rachel said.

"No!" Marco snapped. "Not unless we know she's hurt. It's too big a risk."

Rachel's eyes flared the way they do when someone tells her something she

doesn't want to hear. "I'm calling nine-one-one," she said tersely,

"No, Rachel, I'm okay," I said. I sat up. My head felt a little woozy, but I was

all right.

Rachel hesitated, her fingers just above the keypad. "What about Tobias?"

I looked around the room and saw Tobias spread out on the floor, one wing

crumpled beneath him.

He looked dead.

I jumped up and ran to him.

"Rachel, Cassie seems okay, and nine-one-one can't help Tobias," Jake

said.

Rachel replaced the receiver and ran over to Tobias.

"He's not dead," I said. I could feel him breathing. Then, just as suddenly as

I had, he woke up. His enormous brown hawk's eyes opened, instantly fierce.

His first reaction was pure hawk. He hopped up and flared. Hawks flare just

the way cats do when they're trying to intimidate someone. They hunch

their shoulders and fluff up their feathers to make themselves look bigger

than they are.

"Everybody stand still," I said quickly. "It's okay, Tobias, you were just out

for a minute there."

He quickly gained control over the hawk instincts. <That was strange,> he

said.
"It happened to me, too," I said. "I passed out. And then I had the dream

again. Only this time I could hear an actual voice. Or at least I heard

thought-speech."

<Me, too,> Tobias confirmed.

"Okay, now this is getting weird," Rachel said. "Because at the same time I

thought I kind of felt something."

"Yeah," Jake agreed. Marco nodded.

<I know this sounds crazy, but...but it's like someone is sending out a

distress signal. Like they are calling for help.>

"Only this someone is in the water, or under the water, or something," I

said. "Seeing that video, seeing that writing, it was like suddenly the

message grew stronger."

"Or it may have just been a coincidence," Jake said. "This isn't a dream. I

don't know what it is, but it isn't a dream. Even I halfway saw something.

This is some kind of a communication."

"Well, this is all very interesting," Marco said, "but so what? I mean, are we

getting some kind of psychic message from the Little Mermaid? What are we

supposed to do about it?"

Jake looked closely at me. "Cassie? Was the voice in your dream a human

voice?"

I was startled by the question. I hadn't really thought about it. I actually

laughed. "When you asked me, the first thing that popped into my head was

no, it isn't human." I laughed again. "But that doesn't make any sense."

<lt's not human,> Tobias said suddenly. <I understand the meaning of what

it's saying, but it's not human. It's not 'speaking' in words, really.>

"So what is it?" Rachel asked. "Yeerk?"

I let my mind drift back to the dream. I tried to hear the sound in my head

again. "No, not Yeerk. It reminds me of something. Of someone."

<The Andalite,> Tobias blurted.

I snapped my fingers. "Yes! That's it! it reminds me of the Andalite. When he

first thoughtspoke to us. That's what it's like."

"The Andalite," Marco muttered, He looked away. I knew he was

remembering. We all were.

We had been walking home from the mall at night. Walking through a big

abandoned construction site, when the Andalite ship had appeared above us.

It landed, and out came the Andalite prince, fatally wounded in a battle with

the Yeerk

He was the one who had warned us of the Yeerks - the parasite species that

inhabited the brains of other creatures and enslaved them, making them

Controllers. It was the Andalite who had warned us, and who, in desperation,

had given us the great and terrible weapon -the power to morph.

We had been hiding, cringing in terror, when the Yeerks caught up with the

Andalite. When Visser Three himself, the Yeerk leader, had murdered him.

I shuddered at the terrible memory of the Andalite's last, despairing cry.

"Yes," I whispered. "Tobias is right. It's an Andalite. That's who is calling to

us from the sea. An Andalite."

For a few minutes no one said anything.

Then Rachel said, "He died trying to save us." She looked defiantly at

Marco, "I know that doesn't mean anything to you. But the Andalite died

trying to save Earth."

Marco nodded, "I know. And you're wrong, Rachel. That means plenty to

me."

"Yeah? Well, if there's some Andalite calling for help, I'm going to try and

help him," Rachel said.

I looked over at Jake and we shared this look, like "Oh, big surprise, Rachel

is ready to go." I hid my smile and Jake kept a straight face.

"Tobias?" Jake asked. "What do you say?" <I don't know if I should have a

vote. I'm the one person here who isn't going to be much help dealing with

water. Besides, you guys all know how I'd vote.>

Of all of us, it was Tobias who had stayed longest at the Andalite's side,

even as the Andalite ordered him to get to safety. Something really deep

had gone on between the Andalite prince and Tobias.

It was my turn. "I can't just ignore someone crying out for help, if that's

what this is."

We all looked at Marco. I could see Rachel getting angry, like she was ready

to jump all over Marco if, as usual, he disagreed.

Marco just grinned. "I really hate to do this. I really hate to disappoint you

all." Then he grew serious. "But I was there at the construction site, same

as all of you. I was there when Visser Three --" Suddenly his voice choked.

"What I mean is, if there's an Andalite who needs anything, I'm there."



----------------------
Animorphs #5: The Predator

My name is Marco.
I can't tell you my last name or where I live.
Believe me, I wish I could. I would like nothing more than to be able to tell

you my name is Marco Jones or Williams or Vasquez or Brown or Anderson

or McCain.

Marco McCain. Has kind of a nice sound, doesn't it?

But McCain's not my last name. I'm not even going to swear to you that

Marco is my first name. See, I'm hoping to live a while longer. I'm not going

to make it any easier for the Yeerks to find me.

I live in a paranoid world. But just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean I don't

have enemies.

I have real enemies. Enemies that would freeze your blood if you only knew.

So, see, I'd like to tell you my name, and address, and phone number, too,

because if I could do that, it would mean I no longer had any enemies. It

would mean my life was normal again. It would mean I could go back to

minding my own business.

I believe in minding my own business.

Which is why what happened on my way home from the 7-Eleven was so

dumb.

I was walking down the street with some low-fat milk, a loaf of bread, and a

bag of peanut M&M's. Since my mom died, I've gotten stuck with a lot of the

shopping and stuff for my dad and me.

This 7-Eleven isn't in the greatest neighborhood, so I was walking kind of

fast, minding my own business, trying not to think about the fact that it was

after ten at night.

Then I heard it.

"Just don't hurt me, just don't hurt me."

It was a man's voice. An old man, from the sound of it. It was coming from a

dark alley.

I hesitated. I stopped. I pressed myself back against the cold brick wall of

the building and listened.

"Just gimme the money, old man, don't make me hurt you," a second voice

said. A younger voice. A tough voice.

"I gave you all of it! " the old man cried.

Then the punk said something I can't repeat.

Basically, he was getting ready to pound the old man. I heard other voices.

Three punks total. It didn't look good for the old man.

"This is totally not your problem, Marco," I told myself. "Stay out of it.

Don't be an idiot."

Three punks. Each of them probably twice as big as I was. I'm not exactly

Arnold Schwarzenegger. I'm not even average height for my age, although I

make up for it by being incredibly cute.

And charming. And witty. And modest.

But I was pretty sure the three big gang members in that alley were not

going to be very pressed by my cuteness.

Fortunately, I have other abilities.

It had been a while since I had done this particular morph, but as I

concentrated, I could feel it coming back. I slipped into the opening of the

alley and hid in the shadow of a very smelly Dumpster.

The first thing that happened was the fur. It sprouted quickly from my arms

and legs and all down my body. Thick, rough, ragged, black fur. It grew long

on my arms and back and head. It was shorter everywhere else.

My jaw bulged forward. I could hear the bones in my jaw grind as they

stretched and the nonhuman DNA changed my body.

Morphing doesn't hurt. It creeps you out sometimes, but it doesn't hurt. And

as morphs go, this one wasn't bad. I mean, I still got to keep all my usual

arms and legs and stuff. Not like when I morphed into an osprey. Or a

dolphin. I mean, when I was a dolphin, I was breathing through a hole in the

back of my neck.

With this morph I had arms, as usual. Only they were a lot bigger. A lot

bigger. My legs bent forward. My shoulders grew so massive it was like

having a couple of pigs sitting on my back. I also had an enormous round

belly and a leathery chest.

My face was a black, bulging, rubbery mask, and my eyes were practically

invisible beneath my heavy brow.

I had become a gorilla.

Now, here's the thing about gorillas. They are the sweetest animals around.

If you leave them alone they will mostly just sit and eat leaves all day.

And that's all the gorilla mind really wanted to do right then - eat some

leaves, maybe a nice piece of fruit.

But I was in that head, too, along with the gorilla's instincts. And I had

decided to teach those punks a little lesson. See, now that I was in that

gorilla body, I weighed four hundred pounds. And I was mighty strong.

How strong? Let me put it this way. Compared to a gorilla, a human being is

made out of toothpicks. I wasn't just twice as strong as a man, I was maybe

four, five, six times stronger.

Further down the alley, the punks had lost patience with the old man.

"Let's just kick his butt, " one of the geniuses said.

That's when I decided to say hello. To get their attention, I picked up the

Dumpster and threw it against the far wall of the alley.

Yes, a full-sized Dumpster.

CRASH! BOOM!

"What was that?"

"Look! What is that thing?"

"Whoa! That's some kind of a . . . of a monkey!"

Monkey! I thought. Excuse me? Monkey? I'II show you monkey.

Before they could decide what to do, I charged. Knuckles scraping the dirty

ground, small hind legs propelling me forward, I charged.

If the punks had had any sense, they would have run.

They didn't.

"Get it! " one yelled.

I grabbed him around his arm with one massive fist. I lifted him straight off

the ground and threw him over my shoulder.

"Aaaaaaahhhhh!"

BOOMPH!

He landed on the ground behind me. The other two rushed at me, one on the

left, one on the right. I saw a knife glittering. The knife slashed my arm. It

almost hurt.

"Hoo hoo hrrraaawwwrr!" I yelled, in pure gorilla.

With my injured arm, I landed a backhand blow to the knife guy's chest. He

flew back. I mean, flew. He hit the wall and dropped.

I just grabbed the third guy by the shirt collar and threw him into the

dumpster.

"Don't kill meeeee!" he cried as he sailed through the air.

I had no intention of killing anyone. I hoisted the knife guy into the Dumpster

with his friend. He wasn't breathing real well, but I figured he'd survive.

Hah, I thought. Who needs Spiderman, when Marco is on the case?

While I was telling myself just how cool I was, I heard the sound.

It was a click. Two clicks, actually. The sound of an automatic pistol being

cocked.

I spun around.

BLAM! BLAM!

It was the first guy. The one l'd thrown over my shoulder. He was up on his

feet, gun pointed.

I was big. I was powerful. But a gun was a whole different story. And loud!

Man, are those things loud.

"Hah! Come and get some, monkey man!"

I barreled behind the Dumpster. I leaned my massive shoulders into it and

sent it rolling and spinning and sliding at the guy with the gun.

"Ahhhhh!"

BLAMPH!

So much for the guy with the gun.

I checked. He was alive. He wasn't happy, but he was alive. The gun was

nowhere to be seen.

Well, Marco, I thought, that went okay. Now find someplace private,

demorph, call 911 to come arrest these guys, and you can still get home in

time to watch Letterman.

Unfortunately, I had forgotten one thing.

"G-g-get out of here you . . . you monster!"

The old man. The one I had risked my life to save. He was standing, facing

me. He was shaking with fear and red in the face.

Oh, I thought. So that's where the gun went.

The old man was pointing the gun at me.

"Back, you demon! Don't come any closer."

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

I tore out of the alley with bullets whizzing through the air.

Which just goes to show you why you should never get involved in other

people's problems.

CLOSE WINDOW | NEXT BOOK

------------
Animorphs #6: The Captur


Face down, unconscious, in the superheating Yeerk pool.
I don't know for how long.

When I woke I had two terrifying, overwhelming feelings. One was

suffocation. I had breathed in a lungful of the liquid from the pool.

I came to, gasping and hacking and gagging up water. I was alive, but I could

hardly breathe. Each breath was a struggle. I coughed and I think at one

point I threw up.

The second feeling was of pain in my head. Pain like nothing I had ever even

imagined before. It was like someone was drilling a hole in my ear, drilling

straight into my brain.

I wanted to scream, but I was still choking. I was on my knees on the floor of

the hospital room, wanting to cry from the pain and gasping for every half-

breath of air.

All the while, a battle raged. They were trying to get in the doorway. But it

was too narrow for more than one or two human-Controllers at a time to

attack. Ax's tail and Cassie's long wolf teeth were enough to hold them off.

BLAM! Another gunshot!

"Stop firing, you fool!" someone shouted. "The pool is in there! Visser Three

will eat your guts!"

Even in my condition I could see that Ax and Cassie couldn't last. I needed

to morph, to join the battle. But I could not seem to do it. The pain...or

maybe the lack of oxygen ... I couldn't concentrate. My brain was fuzzy,

drifting . . .

I heard a rumbling, pounding noise from the hallway outside. There were

cries and screams of rage. Suddenly, into the room burst a huge black gorilla

and a second wolf.

Marco and Rachel.

They had driven the attackers away, but only for a few seconds.

<Jake's hurt> I heard Cassie say. <He fell In the Yeerk pool.>

<Marco, grab Jake,> Rachel ordered. <Get something to cover his face. Ax,

Cassie, keep holding the door. I'm going to change morph. We need more

firepower.>

I felt myself lifted up off the floor. A white cloth was wrapped around my

head. One of the lab coats from an injured Controller, I guessed. I was

cradled in the huge arms of a gorilla.

<Rock-a-bye baby,> Marco joked. <Hang in there, man. We're getting you

out of here.>

I was still coughing and gasping, but my breathing was at least improving.

Not enough to speak, but I could breathe enough to keep from passing out.

At the same time, something had happened to the pain in my head. It was

diminishing. And yet, instead of feeling more clearheaded, I felt more

confused.

"Get them!" a Controller was yelling outside the door. "Attack. Attack!"

<It doesn't look like I'm gonna fit through this doorway.> It was Rachel. <So I

guess I'll have to make the door a little bigger.>


I caught just a glimpse through the fabric that hid my face. A flash of

something huge and gray.

Rachel's elephant morph.

<Rachel?> a voice in my head wondered. The voice was surprised. <A

human?>

BOOOM! WHUMP! CRRRUUUUNNCH!

<Now the door is plenty big,> Rachel said.

Wild screams! Panic! Cries of pain!

I was bounced and slammed against walls and even dropped at one point. I

felt us go down a set of stairs. I felt hands grabbing at me and slipping away.

Finally, fresh air. We were running like mad for the shelter of a stand of

trees that fronted the hospital.

<Cassie> Marco said. <You have a horse morph, right? Quick. Before they

figure out how to follow us.>

I was tossed onto the dirt.

The gorilla peeled back the coat that was over my face. <You alive? Man!

That was intense. That is one hospital that's going to need some re-

decorating. We're gonna put you on Cassie. Then we'll try to cover your

retreat>

"My . . . head . . ." I said.

<Headache? No surprise, dude.>

"Something . . . wrong . . . I can't . . . think."

<Don't worry. Take a break. We have it under control. More or less.>

<Unbelievable> said a voice in my head. <Can it be? Humans?>

What was that voice? Where was it coming from?

Marco lifted me and slung me over a horse's back.

<Cassie? A human, yes. And Rachel? The cousin? Human as well.>

My hand tried to pull the coat away from my face.

What was happening? There was a voice inside my head.

We were running now, running and running at full gallop, through trees,

across lawns, down suburban streets where Cassie's hooves clattered

loudly.

We jumped a fence. I flew through the air and landed hard on the dirt.

I felt pain, but it came from far away.

The coat was loose. I looked around. Trees, everywhere. A panting horse

standing nearby.

I saw all this, but in a distant way, as if I were watching it all on TV. My

eyes moved left, right. They moved all on their own. Like someone else was

focusing them.

Cassie. I tried to say her name. Cassie.

But no sound came from my mouth.

<Don't struggle, Jake, a voice in my head said. It's pointless.>

What? Who was saying that? What was... ?

Then, a laugh only I could hear. <Put that primitive human brain to work,

Jake. Jake, the Animorph,> it sneered. <Jake, the servant of the Andalite

filth!>

Then I knew.

I knew what the voice was.

A Yeerk!

A Yeerk in my own head.

I was a Controller.

Animorphs #7: The Stranger

The sticky red whip of the Taxxon's tongue stopped moving.
But it was more than that. Nothing was vibrating against my antennae.

There were no sounds. There were no smells, because the air itself had

stopped moving.

Then, without meaning to, I began to demorph.

<What's going on?> I asked.

<I'm demorphing,> Cassie said. <But it wasn't me doing it.>

<Are we dead? Is this some kind of hallucination?> I asked.

<If it is, I'm having it, too,> Jake said.

I swiftly grew larger and larger. My center pair of cockroach legs dwindled

and disappeared. My lower legs swelled and grew skin.

I fell from the Taxxon's tongue to the ground, too large and heavy to be

stuck any longer.

Toes appeared. Fingers appeared. My true human eyes opened.

I looked around, dazed and disoriented.

The others were all there. We were all human again, barefoot and dressed in

our skin-tight morphing outfits, like we always were when we came out of a

morph.

Ax was back in his Andalite body, just adding to the general weirdness of the

scene.

We were inside a building. As we had guessed, it was a lunchroom. There was

a kitchen to one side. There were a dozen long tables down the middle of

the room.

People sat at the tables, eating. Only...they weren't eating. They were

holding forks. They were looking down at plates of food. They were getting

ready to speak. They were holding mugs of coffee.

But no one was moving.

No one was breathing.

The steam rising from the mugs of coffee was frozen and still as a

photograph.

"Okay. I'm ready to wake up now," Marco said. "This dream is getting

weird."

"Look," I said. "Hork-Bajir." Two Hork-Bajir were standing by the door. I

had never seen one standing still before. Even frozen in place they were

frightening -- seven feet of knife-edged arms, legs, head, and tail. Salad

shooters on legs, as Marco said. Walking razor blades.

And then there was the Taxxon. The one who had been about to eat us. It

was a monstrously big centipede, as big around as a concrete sewer pipe. It

had a round, red mouth at the very top of its worm body. The long, red whip

of a tongue stuck out and hung in the air.

"I have an idea," Marco said. "Even if this is a dream...let's get OUT of

here!"

"Definitely," I agreed.

"MOVE!" Jake said loudly.

We ran for the door of the lunchroom. Out into the vast, intimidating

openness of the cavern.

Outside, the same freeze had occurred. The surface of the Yeerk pool was

still. The humans and Hork-Bajir who were involuntary hosts were frozen in

their cages, screaming and crying and shouting without a sound or a

movement.

On the infestation pier, a woman was bent low over the water, held down by

a Hork-Bajir. A Yeerk was halfway into her ear. She was crying. Her tears

were motionless on her cheeks.

Then I saw something moving. One single thing in all that eerie stillness.

A boy. He was tall, a little gangly. He had hair that looked as if it had never

been combed.

"Oh..." I whispered. "Oh...look! It's Tobias!"

The others all turned to see.

Tobias shrugged his human shoulders. He held up his hands to stare at his

own fingers. "It is me," he said, sounding like he doubted it. "My old body.

Here."

I ran to him. I don't really know why, I just did. I wanted to touch him. To

know he was real.

"Ah! Ah! Ah!" he yelled. He jumped back and suddenly threw his arms up and

down.

He was flapping, trying to get away. Trying to fly. I had scared him by

rushing at him.

"Sorry," he whispered, terribly embarrassed. "Sorry."

I put my arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"Tobias, what's going on?" I asked him.

"I don't know," he said. "I was flying...then suddenly, I was here. Like this."

<Time has stopped,> Ax said. <For everyone but us. I can feel it.>

"Something is very, very wrong," Cassie said darkly...



-------------------
Animorphs #8: The Alien


A human has only two eyes. Both are on the front of the face. It is the same

with most Earth species. These human eyes are very similar to our own main

eyes. But humans seem fascinated by my stalk eyes. One of the humans,

Marco, has said they "creep him out big time." I believe this is a

compliment.
- From the Earth Diary of Aximilli-Esgarrouth-Isthil
"Here it is," Cassie said. "School. Or, as I like to think of it - purgatory."

The school was very active. There were large numbers of humans racing

about at high speed. Others moved very slowly and seemed sad or ill. Many

carried books. Most made mouth-sounds.

As usual they were dressed in a shocking variety of clothing. Clothing is not

a uniquely human idea, but of course Andalites do not indulge in it.

However, when I am in human morph I must wear clothing. All of my human

friends, even Tobias, agree on this. They agree very strongly on this one

point.

I saw Rachel and Marco approaching through the crowd of humans.

My other human friends tell me that Rachel is beautiful and Marco is cute.

As an Andalite, I don't observe either trait. However, when I am in human

morph I begin to see that Rachel actually is very beautiful.

But I never see that Marco is cute.

At school, the Animorphs must pretend not to be very close. This is so any

suspicious human-Controllers will not begin to think of them as a "group."

"Hi, Marco, Rachel," Prince Jake said. "Meet my cousin ... Phillip."

"Yes. I am Prince Jake's cousin, Phillip," I said. "I am from out of state."

Marco made a smile with his mouth. "You're from way, way out of state."

"Don't call me 'prince,"' Prince Jake hissed.

"Nice to see you again, Phillip," Rachel said and winked. Since she was

really my cousin, she would have already met "Phillip." "See you guys later.

Good luck."

"You'll need it," Marco added.

We went inside the school building. It seemed to be nothing but a very long

corridor. It was filled with humans. Along each side of the corridor there

were doors. Some of the doors were large. But there were hundreds of much

smaller doors. I observed people opening the small doors, but no one ever

went inside.

"Where do the small doors lead?" I asked.

"Nowhere. Those are lockers," Cassie said. "Everyone has a locker. See?

There's my locker right there."

We went to Cassie's locker. It was decorated with a shiny pendant. The

pendant had a wheel with numbers on it. Cassie spun the wheel back and

forth.

"Is that a ritual?" I asked. "Chew-ull. Ritual."

"No, that's a lock. It keeps people out."

"Why?"

"So they won't steal my stuff." She opened her locker and began putting

things in and taking things out.

"What is that?" I asked. "Thuh-at. That."

"It's just a picture," Cassie said. She quickly closed the door of her locker.

"It looked like a picture of Prin ... of Jake," I pointed out. "Why would you

have a picture of him when he is right here and you can see him?"

Cassie shrugged and looked down at the ground. Humans have many facial

expressions. I believe this one indicated either sickness or embarrassment.

"Come on, Ax," Prince Jake said. He was smiling at Cassie and she was

continuing to look sick or embarrassed. "We'll see you later, Cassie. Time for

first -"

Just then, a terrible, mind-shattering sound!

"Bbbbbrrrrrrriiiiinnnnngggg!"

I spun around. I raised my human arms, ready to use them for defense. I

wished I had my tail. It's a terrible thing to be without a tail in a fight. But I

was ready to do the best I could with my human body.

"Ax! I mean, Phillip. Relax."

"Bbbbbbbrrrrrriiiiiiinnnnngggg!"

"That noise!" I cried. "What kind of beast is it?"

"Ax, it's just the bell for first period," Jake said. "Take it easy. People are

staring."

"It's not a threat?"

"No. It's not a threat. It's depressing, but not dangerous."

I followed Prince Jake as he led the way down the hall. It was difficult to

forget the horrible noise. When humans are threatened their bodies are

flooded with a chemical that make them hyper-alert, fearful, and aggressive.

The chemical is called adrenalin. My system was now flooded with adrenalin.

It was very distracting.

We entered one of the large doors. Inside were approximately thirty humans

arranged in small, confining seats. At the front of the room was a large

table. An older human stood there.

"Everyone get to your seats," the older human said.

Prince Jake said, "Mr. Pardue? This is my cousin from out of town. His

name's Phillip. He's just hanging with me today, okay?"

"Just sit. Sit. Be quiet and sit."

I could tell from Prince Jake's facial expression that he was troubled. He

took my arm and led me to the back of the room.

"Take that desk," Prince Jake said.

"Take it where? Wheh-err? Where?"

"I mean sit in it."

I understood sitting. I was getting pretty good at passing for human.

Once, for two days I had to morph Prince Jake and pretend to be him. I was

successful in fooling his parents and brother. Although I later learned that

his parents believed "he" had become mentally ill. When the real Prince

Jake returned, they took him to see a doctor.

"Sitting in this desk is unpleasant," I said.

"You got that right, dude," a human I didn't know said.

"What is going on back there? Quiet down," the teacher demanded loudly.

"What is . . . what ... wha . . ." Suddenly, he clutched at his head with both

hands. "Everyone be quiet! Quiet!"

Now Prince Jake looked very troubled. "Mr. Pardue, are you okay?"

All the other humans stared at the teacher, too. Everyone was very quiet.

"Okay?" Mr. Pardue demanded in a loud, angry voice. "Am I okay? Am I -

aaaaahhhhh!"

Without warning, Mr. Pardue pitched forward. He fell on the floor. He clawed

at his head with his hands.

And he cried. "Yeerk! Get out of me!"

He clawed at his head till blood began to flow.


-------------------
Animorphs #9: The Secret


Wolves can run. Wolves can run all through the night, without stopping or

slowing or taking a break.
We ran, Marco and I, jumping fallen logs, swerving through trees, and skirting

patches of thorns. Across sunset-lit meadows, and through dark stands of

tall pines. We splashed happily through streams and skittered across rocks.

We were running on sensation, our heads swimming with smell and sound and

sight. There was nothing within a thousand yards that we didn't know about.

We were plugged into the data stream of nature itself.

We smelled the logging camp long before we reached it. Then we heard the

sounds of machines. And we heard the murmurs of conversation. Human

voices.

Then we got a reminder that we were not the only hyper-alert predators in

the forest.

<Is that you guys?> a thought-speak voice asked. Jake's voice.

<Yes. Where are you?> I asked.

<Way up above you,> Jake said with a laugh. I stopped running and craned

my head back like I was going to howl at the moon. Through a break in the

trees I saw a patch of sky. And way, way up in that sky, I saw two tiny black

dots.

Tobias and Jake, floating a quarter-mile up. Even in the weakening light

they had seen us from clear up in the bellies of the clouds.

<The place is just ahead. Lots of heavy equipment. Guards. But go take a

look. Just be careful.>

<We'd hang out, but the sun's going down and we won't be able to see much

more anyway,> Tobias remarked.

<You saw us,> I said, a bit grumpily.

Tobias laughed. <Yeah, but you're a pair of great big wolves. That's not

much of a challenge. Now, that flea crawling by your ear...>

<You can't see a flea,> I said.

<Heh,heh,heh,> Tobias answered. <Can't I?>

Marco and I started moving forward again, but slower than before. More

cautiously.

Through the trees we began to see light. Artificial light.

We crept slowly nearer, shoulders hunched, heads low, ears aimed forward,

sniffing the wind for clues.

The command center building was bigger than it had looked at first. It was

made of logs, like some kind of rustic ranger station. It was two-stories tall,

with a porch on the front.

On the back-and-side ground levels there were no windows. None at all.

There were windows on the upper level, but they were dark. Too dark for me

to see into.

There were blindingly bright spotlights mounted atop the building. The forest

had been cut back a hundred feet or so on all sides of the building, and the

bare, scarred earth all around was lit as bright as the sunniest day.

A dozen or so huge pieces of equipment were parked neatly side by side.

Earthmovers, oddly-shaped cranes, trucks, and some monstrous thing that

looked like a huge kid's toy. I guessed that it was used to cut trees.

My heightened wolf senses noticed several men walking around the

perimeter of the clearing. They were spaced about fifty yards apart and

seemed very alert.

The nearest one was walking just in front of us. Marco and I crouched low

behind tree trunks and stood perfectly still.

The man wore a tan uniform. The legs of his pants were tucked into high

leather boots. He was carrying an automatic rifle.

<Okay, this does look just slightly extreme for a logging camp. That guy is no

lumberjack,> I said.

I aimed my ears at the building, but no sounds came from inside. Either

there was no one in there or they had soundproofed the place really well.

<Are you getting anything?> Marco asked me.

<Not from inside the building. But I'm smelling stuff that I can't recognize.

Weird smells.>

<Yeah. Me too. Animal smells, but weird, you know?>

<Hork-Bajir?>

<Could be,> Marco said.

<The guards are all human,> I pointed out. <You know, this may have nothing

to do with the Yeerks. Maybe whoever these guys are, they're up to

something totally different. I mean, normal humans do act strange

sometimes. Not every weird person is a Controller.>

<No. But don't forget -- the force field. Even if these guys were like drug

dealers or something, I don't think they'd have a force field.>

<Good point.> I fell silent. I had heard a noise. Several noises. Movement.

Careful, stealthy movement.

I glanced at Marco. I saw that his ears were pricked up, too. <Yeah, I heard

that,> Marco said. <Behind us. Someone circling around.>

I felt the knife edge of fear. The human part of me was afraid. The wolf me

was not. But I trusted the human instinct more on this.

<Where are the guards?> I asked.

<Uh-oh,> Marco said.

Blinding light!

Light everywhere. Everywhere! The whole world was a brilliant white.

I felt like the whole universe could see me.

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

The sound of sharp, cracking explosions in the trees above us. I glanced up.

Something falling. A net!

Big steel nets were exploding from the trees above us, falling toward us.

There were heavy weights at the edges.

<RUN!>

We bolted. The net above me fell. I was racing the falling edge, racing,

racing...

Free!

The net scraped my back. But I was out from under!

Tsewww! Tsewww!

A brilliant stab of red light shot from the dark upper windows of the log

building. The beam hit the base of a tree not six inches from me. The wood

was vaporized. A six-inch hole was blown right through its trunk.

Dracon beams!

I started to run. But something felt wrong. Marco! Where was he?

I turned and looked back. He was under the net! He was weighed down and

crawling on his belly to get free of it.

I ran back.

Tsewww! Tsewww!

The Dracon beams, almost pale in the brilliant floodlit woods, fired again and

again.

I grabbed the edge of the net in my jaws and lifted it up. It was shockingly

heavy. No wonder Marco was crawling.

<Get out of here!> Marco yelled. <Don't get killed for me.>

<Shut up and come on!> I cried.

Tsewww! Tsewww!

I couldn't hold the net. My jaws were aching. My neck was dragging down.

Marco was barely inching forward. The Dracon beams were getting more and

more accurate.

And now I saw where the guards had disappeared to. They were running

through the woods toward us. Half a dozen men carrying automatic weapons.

It was an eerie and terrifying sight, as the men cast gigantic shadows up into

the treetops.

Then . . . something fast. Faster than a wolf. Faster than a human.

Like a deer. Like a horse. A mouthless face, eyes on stalks, a tail like a

scorpion. A creature like nothing that grew on Earth. It raced straight for us.

<Ax!> I cried.

His tail struck, faster than a human eye could follow.

The tail blade made sparks as it sliced through the net, leaving a long gash

just in front of Marco's nose.

<Yikes! That was a little close!> Marco said. But he surged through the hole

in the net and took off. I was right behind him. Wolves are already fast. But

when you get a scared wolf with a scared human mind inside it, you'd be

amazed how that animal can move.

We hauled out of there, with Ax right beside us.

BamBamBamBamBamBamBamBam!

Gunfire! Good, old-fashioned, human, very deadly gunfire.

It's much louder in reality than it is in movies.

And it's much scarier to have it aimed at you than it is to see it in a movie.

Basically, getting shot at is absolutely nothing like a movie.

<Aaaaahhh!> I yelled.

<Aaaaahhh!> Marco yelled.

<Aaaaahhh!> Ax agreed.

Two wolves and an Andalite set a new record speeding away from that

place.

Animorphs #10: The Android


There may be something in this world cooler than flying on your own wings,

but I can't imagine what it is.
Rollerblading? Hah! Surfing? Big deal. Skydiving? Closer, but not halfway to

actual flying.

Nothing is as cool as flying.

It was after school that same day. I'd finished the English paper exactly nine

seconds before the teacher came around to collect it. Then I'd gone to

history and been assigned another paper. That's the nature of school: It

never really ends.

But finally the bell rang and blessed freedom! I was outta there and looking

for a private place to morph. I wanted to check up on Erek. Remembering

the funeral and all had made it seem even more important, although I wasn't

sure I knew why.

I climbed up onto the roof of the gym. Of course, no one is supposed to go

up there, but hey, it was for a good reason. I morphed into an osprey. It's a

bird, a kind of hawk that usually lives right near the water.

I spread my broad wings and I flew away from school.

Tell me you haven't sat there in some boring class, while some teacher went

on and on (and on and on) about how "x" equaled "y" but only if you

multiplied it by pi, and wished you could just fly right out the window. Zoom!

Good-bye!

Well, I can't fly right out of class because if I morphed in class there would

be a lot of screaming and hysteria. But I can come close to doing it.

Kids were still piling onto the buses as I caught a nice little headwind and

used it to go airborne. I zoomed high above all the kids heading for their

buses, and all the teachers heading for their cars. People were just ovals of

black, brown, blond, and red hair to me. That's mostly what a person looks

like from a hundred feet up. A hair oval.

I have never felt as totally alive as when I'm in a hawk morph. Tobias

doesn't have it all that bad, in some ways. There are so many worse animals

to be.

I felt a thermal, a pillar of warm air, billow up beneath my wings and I went

for it. Zoom! Like riding an elevator to the top floor! Up and up. The warm

air currents swept me higher and higher.

<Yah-HAH!>

Now the hair ovals were just dots, and the buses were bright yellow toys

pulling slowly away from the school.

But even from five hundred feet up in the air, as high as a fifty-story

building, I could still see faces behind the school bus windows. With the

osprey's eyes, it's like wearing binoculars.

I floated up there, wings spread wide, my tail fanned out to catch every bit

of lift, my talons tucked back against the underside of my body. Air rushed

over the leading edge of my wings, making a slight fluttering sound. Wind

flowed over my streamlined head, and I kept my hooked beak pointed

forward to maintain every ounce of momentum.

I rode that thermal as high as it would carry me. I'd learned that from

Tobias. See, the thermal will give you altitude for almost no effort, and you

can turn that altitude into distance. It's like soaring to the top of a

mountain, then skiing down the slopes in whatever direction you want to go.

Still, it did eventually require some hard wing-flapping to get to Erek's

neighborhood.

I spotted Tobias from far off, when he would have been invisible to any

human eye. He was riding the wind, just like me. Maybe with a little more

style, since he'd had so much more experience.

When I got close to enough to try thought-speak, I called to him.

<Tobias? Can you hear me?>

<I can hear you and see you, Marco. I've been watching you for twenty

minutes.>

<No way. I just spotted you.>

<You have to know what to look for, Marco. By the way ... when I count to

three, you need to bank a very sharp, very fast left turn.>

<Turn? Why?>

<Just do it! One. Two. THREE!>

I raised one wing, lowered the other, skewed my tail, and cut a sudden,

sharp left.

FWOOOOM!

<Aaaahhhhh!>

A missile blew past me, doing what seemed like a thousand miles an hour!

Only it wasn't coming from the ground upward, it had fallen from the sky

down! And this missile had gray feathers.

The wind from its passing nearly knocked me off balance. It was half a mile

away, down and south, by the time I could even think about focusing.

I saw swept-back, slate-gray wings and a tight tail. It was diving away from

me so fast it made me look like I was standing still.

<What the ... What was that?!> I yelled.

<Heh, heh, heh. Welcome to my world,> Tobias said. <That's a peregrine

falcon. You know, like Jake's morph. They usually prefer to knock off a tasty

pigeon or the occasional duck. It must have been the way you were flying.

He probably thought you were a big old clumsy duck.>

<Jeez. What did I ever do to make him mad?>

<Shake it off,> Tobias advised. <He missed, right? I know that bird. He's not

as good as he thinks he is. He's taken a shot at me before. He must be

hungry.>

Suddenly flying didn't seem nearly as fun. <Yeah. I'll shake it off. That

should be easy, since I'll be shaking for at least another hour.>

<It's not all just about riding thermals,> Tobias said dryly. <Come on, you

want to see our boy Erek?>

I moved closer to Tobias. Much closer. This was his world up here in the air.

He knew what he was doing. <By the way, thanks,> I said.

<Always remember to look up,> Tobias advised. <The danger is usually above

you. But on a lighter note ... that's Erek right there. He walks home from his

school. See him? Coming to the corner?>

I spotted the oval of hair below me. <Yeah, I see him.>

<I watched him this morning on his way in. I watched him play soccer during

gym ->

<They play soccer? They play soccer during gym? Man, we never get to play

soccer.>

<Now he's heading home. I'm going to let you take over because I am hungry.

And I am also bored with looking at the top of his head.>

<Did he do anything weird or different?>

<He scored a goal in soccer. Does that count?>

<Hey. Look.> I had noticed three guys closing in behind Erek. Something in

the way they moved caught my attention. From high up, it looked almost as

if they were hunting Erek.

<Hmmm. That's not good,> Tobias said.

We both spilled air from our wings and dived, wanting a closer look. I could

see the face of one of the guys behind Erek. It was an expression I had seen

before: the idiot, giggling sneer of a bully.

Suddenly, the guys raced forward. Erek spotted them and started to run.

It was a street on the edge of a development. There was a lot of traffic to

Erek's left and a stone wall to his right. The stone wall ended about fifty

yards away, where it opened for the entrance to the subdivision.

<If this guy is a Controller, these punks are making a serious mistake,> I

said. <They may get him today, but they might regret it later.>

<Maybe I'll just give that one jerk a little talon haircut,> Tobias said.

Tobias hates bullies. Back when he was human, he was the kid most likely to

be pounded on. Jake met Tobias when Tobias's head was just about to be

flushed in the toilet. Naturally, Jake helped him.

<Tobias, I don't think - > I started to say, but it was too late. Tobias was in

a stoop and aiming for the biggest guy's head.

It all happened in a flash.

Erek ran. He tripped. He sprawled forward, out into the street. He slammed

into the broad side of a passing bus.

WHAM! I could hear the impact from up in the air.

And then...

And then... for just a second, Erek wasn't there anymore. Something else

was where he had been.

Something that seemed to be made of patches of steel and milk-white

plastic.

Then, in the next split second, Erek was back. A normal boy, lying winded on

the sidewalk.

The bullies ran off. The bus driver never even noticed and drove on.

Tobias opened his wings and nearly stopped in midair.

<Did you see that?> Tobias asked.

<Yeah. I sure did.>

<What was that?>

<I don't know,> I said. <But I know what it wasn't. It wasn't human.>

--------------
Animorphs #11: The Forgotten


8:42 P.M.
It was crowded inside the Bug fighter. Especially because Ax takes up a lot

of room.

But we huddled together and looked over Ax's shoulders as he worked the

controls. And we looked past Ax, out through the transparent panels at the

front of the Bug fighter.

<This ship is very difficult to handle,> Ax said. <The design is strange. Some

controls are psychotronic. But others require physical handling.

Unfortunately, those controls are designed for Taxxons. They have more

hands than I.>

"Can we do anything to help?" I asked

<Someone should take weapons station,> Ax said.

"Cool," Marco said. He leapt forward, but I was closer.

I slipped into the area beside Ax. Ax's pilot "seat" wasn't a seat at all, of

course. Taxxons are like huge centipedes, so they can't really sit. Which was

good, because Ax doesn't sit, either.

But the weapons station was built for Hork-Bajir. Hork-Bajir are seven feet

tall and have thick, spiky tails, but they do sit.

"No way you should handle the weapons," Marco said, leaning over my

shoulder. "I kick your butt in video games."

"Yeah, right," I said. "In some alternate universe, maybe."

"Grab the joystick," Marco suggested.

As strange as it seems, there actually was a joystick. It was for much bigger

hands than mine, and the two buttons on it were clumsy to reach. But it was

a joystick.

"Maybe I should test the weapons," I said to Ax.

<Yes,> he said tersely, distracted.

We were rising up through the atmosphere. We were above the clouds

already. I could see brief flashes of the lights of the city down below, but

mostly it was clouds and more clouds.

But we weren't rising as fast as I would have expected. Ax was definitely

working to control the ship.

I looked ahead, saw nothing in the way, and pressed one of the buttons on

the joystick. Nothing.

Ax glanced over. <That was the safety. The Dracon beam should be armed

now. See the screen before you? The red circle is how you aim. Use a

combination of moving the joystick, but also use your mind.>

Marco put his hand on my shoulder. "Phasers on full power!" he said in a

Captain Picard English accent. "Arm photon torpedoes! If the Borg want a

fight, we'll give them one! Make it so!"

I moved the joystick and watched the target circle track across the screen.

It still showed nothing but starry sky. That should be safe enough.

I squeezed the second button.

TSEWWWW! TSEWWWW!

Twin red beams of light fired forward, converging too far away for me to see.

"Yes! Most splendid!" Marco yelled.

"Okay, that was cool," I admitted, trying not to cackle like an idiot with his

first video game.

"Boys with their toys," Cassie teased gently.

<Prince Jake?> Ax said. <I must apologize.>

"Why?"

<I did not at first realize: This Bug fighter's cloaking field is not working.>

It took a few seconds for me to track on that. "You mean ... people can see

us?"

<The clouds will hide us from people on the ground,> Ax said. <But human

radar will observe us. In fact, they have already observed us.>

"Uh-oh. Maybe we better get higher," I suggested.

<Yes. But we are rising slowly. I don't know why. And there are two objects

approaching us.>

"Probably just airliners," Rachel said.

<The objects are moving at one and a half times the speed of sound,> Ax

said.

"Okay, that's not a passenger plane," Marco said.

I groaned. "Military jets. Oh man, it's the Air Force after us. They're 'good

guys.' They're on our side. We can't shoot them down."

Suddenly ...

SWOOOOOSH!

SWOOOOOSH!

Two pale gray jets blew past us. The backwash rattled the Bug fighter.

<I can access their radio signals,> Ax said. And a second later we heard the

voice of one of the pilots.

"Um . . . Base Control, I ... um ... Bogie is of an unknown type. Say again,

unknown type."

"Definitely unknown," the other pilot said. "Way unknown ..."

"We're coming around for another pass."

I looked at Ax. "We really don't want to get shot down by a couple of F-

sixteens."

<No, Prince Jake. That would be embarrassing. I believe I now know how to

increase - >

FAH-WHOOOOOOOM!

Suddenly, we were outta there. Out of the clouds. Out of the atmosphere.

"Yes! This thing can move!" Marco exulted. "We need to buy this game."

We heard a fainter, crackling voice over the radio. "Did you see that? Did

you see that thing move, Colonel? Did you see that? What the - "

Then we were out of range, still zooming straight up into black space. Below

us I could see the curvature of the earth. It looked just like one of those

pictures the shuttle astronauts take from up in orbit.

"That's so beautiful," Cassie said. "Look at that! You can see daylight

coming up over the Red Sea."

<Excuse me,> Tobias said, <but I don't think the Red Sea is exactly on the

way to Washington, DC.>

"Yeah, I guess not," I said. Although it was such a wonderful sight that I

almost didn't want to worry about where we were going. "Ax, maybe we'd

better slow down, get some idea of where Washington is and - "

<No! No!> Ax snapped.

I was shocked. Ax is always polite.

<No, Prince Jake,> he said, a little more calmly. <We cannot slow down.>

"What's the matter?" Cassie asked him.

Ax pointed at one of the view screens before him. On the screen I saw stars.

Then the moon came into view, a vast gray-and-white lightbulb.

And silhouetted against the glowing moon was a shape. It was like some

medieval battle-ax. The rear half was a two-headed blade. From the middle,

like an ax handle, extended a long shaft. At the end of the shaft was a

triangular head, very much like an arrow's point.

It was black on black. And even if you had never seen it before and had no

idea what it was, you'd know right away it was death.

I had seen it. I knew what it was.

"The Blade ship," I whispered.

The Blade ship of Visser Three.