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Post by Xerxes on Mar 8, 2013 17:17:01 GMT -5
Xerxes had just shifted his attention momentarily to one side, peering at the opposite street, when a sudden clanging sound, such as a falling object makes, pulled his attention back to a side alley he and Shiro were about to pass. But out of the dismal darkness of the alley, a monstrous creature devoured the distance between them and seemed to launch itself towards Shiro.
Even as Shiro whipped a blade out of nowhere, Xerxes only managed to freeze, the hilts of two throwing knives barely resting in his cupped hands, extending only a hair past his sleeves and hidden between his sides and his arms. After all, it wasn’t everyday one witnessed a komodo dragon attack in the midst of Wisconsin. Nor did one experience thought-speech warnings.
After several seconds of delay as the two combatants began to clash, Xerxes managed to wipe the surprise on his face and assume a wary look. Allowing the knife blades to slide down fully into his hands--in case he needed to use them quickly--Xerxes slowly stepped backwards three times. The monitor’s warning was clearly about Shiro. The monitor was clearly an Animorph. But Shiro’s warning was about the dragon. Shiro was clearly an Animorph. Why would an Animorph attack another of its kind?
Xerxes retreated a fair distance, placing a car between him and the combatants, just in case. He semi-crouched behind it on the street, affording himself some measure of protection against....well, anything, he guessed. It would also give him some time to think things through.
Scenario A: The Animorphs were suffering under a political dispute or civil war amongst themselves. This was a clash between two individuals of opposing ideas, both with the desire to gain Xerxes’ information for their own, malicious use against the other side. Which meant that the original three animorphs were at odds with one another. Possibly, they were seeking to acquire Xerxes as a potential recruit, but that seemed unlikely. Which meant Xerxes wanted nothing to do with any of them.
Scenario B: Shiro was a rogue Animorph that was seeking to either bring down their entire organization through Xerxes’ information or to use the same details as a blackmail shield from their wrath. Which meant the dragon was morally righteous and Shiro was in the wrong.
Scenario C: The lizard was a rogue Animorph, attempting to steal Xerxes away from the main organization in attempts to weaken them and not allow them to expand in numbers and power. Or he (as the mental voice seemed to be a male’s) just wanted a chance to kill Shiro, an ally of his former team. Or he wanted Shiro out of the way in order to access Xerxes’ information for himself.
Scenario D: Neither of them were actually trying to kill one another. This was an elaborate ruse to scare Xerxes into hiding, and therefore out of the public’s view, so the Animorphs could dispose of him in secret. In fact, that seemed like the most likely option. Shiro had, after all, seemed to be a savvy man capable of such trickery.
But either way, Xerxes decided he’d stay where he was and wait for the outcome of the skirmish, with no interference on his part and without obeying either person. If one killed the other, than he’d know that it wasn’t a trap. And if he didn’t like the victor, well, he had several knives of his own.
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Post by Javier Delgado on Mar 8, 2013 20:18:05 GMT -5
Javier's lunging bite attack was met with a large hunting knife to the face. <<Arrahhh!>> He let out a cry of pain as the blood flowed down his snout and cheek. It was a painful wound, and deep, but probably not immediately fatal.
Javier came to a stop just past the devious yeerk, but instead of turning to face him, Javier lashed with his tail, aiming to knock the man off balance. <<Get away!>> he said to both the controller and the boy. Then just to the boy he said, <<This man is one of them! A yeerk! Do. Not. Trust him!>> The boy had taken cover, but was still too close to danger for Javier's tastes. Regardless, Javier turned and lunged back into the fray.
A simple flick of his tongue gave Javier a plethora of knowledge, much of which he was not yet proficient at interpreting. But it was still helpful. It more than made up for the fact that he was practically deaf and had vision that would be all but useless in the dark. But it wasn't dark right now, and Javier watched in full color as he struck with claw and tooth and tail, trying to overpower his adversary. Komodo dragons were efficient killers, but a human with a hunting knife was still far from harmless, and Javier probably took just as many potentially serious wounds as he gave.
Not for the first time Javier wondered what had made him crazy enough to sign up for this.
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Post by Shiro/Efflit on Mar 8, 2013 20:41:46 GMT -5
Efflit curled Shiro's lips into a sly smile when he managed to cut the lizard without taking a scratch. But his joy was short lived when a moment later the gargantuan herptile swept his feet out from under him with its long tail. He hit the ground hard on his back, knocking the wind from his lungs and smacking his skull on the pavement. <<Get Away!>> the animorph commanded. The stars were just beginning to clear from his vision when the Komodo dragon came back for more.
It was all Efflit could do to put up an arm to block an attack on his neck. He stabbed wildly with his knife, but was too busy trying to draw air into his lungs to aim properly. But finally the air came and he managed to cough out some words. "Kill him! Kill him, Boy! If I die he is coming for you next!"
The lizard tore a chunk out near his neck just a he stabbed into the beast's abdomen. Efflit managed to roll free and ended up roughly near the vehicle where the young man had taken cover. "If we work together we can take out this wannabe underling. I'll let you join the animorphs for sure if you do."
Efflit was considering morphing elephant seal. It would heal his plethora of grievous injuries and make defeating this lizard practically guaranteed, but it could also make him vulnerable during the in between stages.
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Post by Xerxes on Mar 9, 2013 14:00:25 GMT -5
Xerxes Agamemnon Alerion, much like two of his namesakes, watched the battle unfold and attempted to foresee the most strategic course of action for himself. While the slashing continued at a rapid pace, both combatants seemed to be able to also divert enough attention to communicate solely to him. But what they said was what intrigued Xerxes.
Shiro ascribed viciousness towards the komodo dragon, predicting Xerxes’ inevitable doom if he didn’t kill it. Shio’s voice seemed to desire blood and death, not to mention the suspicious nature of his deal. Xerxes still didn’t trust the Animorph. But in the heat of battle, Shiro seemed more like a used-car salesman, saying anything to con the customer into buying a lemon. In this instance, it was this: help me and you will definitely become an Animorph, or you can just stay over there and die.
Well, Shiro had already told him he could become an Animorph, so why would he tack on the qualifier of “for sure,” if it was already a definite thing? It sounded like being thrown a bone in order for Shiro to get what he wanted. It sounded like a ruse, a distraction, a lie. By only now claiming Xerxes could become an Animorph, it implied that Shiro had lied earlier.
Not only that, but the komodo dragon’s actions seemed to contradict what the man had said. It’s voice had echoed in Xerxes’ mind, possibly privately, telling him to stay away from both of the brawlers. Why would he do that if he wanted to kill him? The dragon seemed to only have two objectives: attack Shiro and keep Xerxes away from Shiro. Was there perhaps some truth to the dragon’s statement? Was Shiro a yeerk?
But yeerks can’t morph. And only Esplin 9466 ever had a cost that could morph. As far as Xerxes was aware, no other hosts were ever given the ability to morph. Because they’d never gotten ahold of the Escafil device. So that would have to mean that, if the dragon was speaking in sooth, Shiro had recently become infested by the Yeerks. and if that was the case....
Great Scott! Shiro had been trying to infest him! That was why Xerxes had not been attacked earlier! In retrospect, certain things became clearer to Xerces. The military style shiro carried himself. The sudden switches in voice and expressions. The soothing, persuading, smoke-and-mirror style of talking. They were reminiscent of The Sharing recruiters of the old days, always offering Kool-Aid to the unwary.
Realization of his nearly-fatal error dawned on him and Xerxes began to back away slowly, circling behind the line of cars by the sidewalk and attempting to circle around behind the Komodo dragon, placing the reptile between him and Shiro. As he stalked away, never taking his eyes off the approximate spot where Shiro had landed, Xerxes allowed the hilts of the throwing knives to slide fully into his grasp. He whipped his hands up just hard enough to allow the knives to fling into the air a few inches before he grabbed them again, gripping their blades with the ease of long practice.
“I’ve got your back,” Xerxes informed the dragon in a clearly enunciated voice, dripping with scorn and cold anger towards Shiro.
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Post by Shiro/Efflit on Mar 9, 2013 19:50:11 GMT -5
Efflit stayed crouched near the vehicle where the boy had taken cover, one hand resting on the asphalt of the street for support. His other hand was stretched out behind him, holding his knife, ready to slice at a moments notice. The controller breathed heavily as his piercing gaze focused on the lizard. Not a twitch would escape his notice.
But after a moment of staring at each other, Efflit realized several things. Firstly, both he and the reptile were dripping a lot of blood onto the ground and breathing heavily. Secondly, they were beginning to attract a lot of attention. Further down the sidewalk behind the Komodo dragon he spotted a small crowd gathering. They were smart enough to keep their distance for now, but if they realized or even suspected that he was a controller, he could have trouble on his hands. After the first invasion, humans had gained a new found hostility toward suspected yeerks.
But the third thing he noticed was the most disturbing. "I've got your back," the boy said after he moved in behind the dragon. It was obvious that he wasn't speaking to Shiro. Furthermore, the boy had blades. Efflit's chances of winning were quickly evaporating.
"Fine. Take him. Just one more for me to collect later." Efflit backed up between some cars stopped in the street, and once he had obtained sufficient cover, turned and fled. Part of wining the long game was knowing when you had lost the short one.
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Post by Javier Delgado on Mar 9, 2013 23:43:09 GMT -5
Javier's breathing was labored as he kept his eyes focused on the animorph controller before him. he was pretty sure a lung had been punctured by one of the stabs and blood was surely making its way into the wound. But even as he waited for an attack while simultaneously looking for opportunities to strike, Javier's eyes did not overlook the movement that was taking place behind his enemy.
The young man he had told to flee was moving.
At first Javier assumed that he was indeed running away as suggested, but before long he heard a muffled noise behind himself, then a muffled noise coming from the controller, and then the controller took off. Only when the controller was out of sight did Javier spare a glance back, seeing the boy with his blades at the ready.
<<I think you just saved my life,>> Javier commented without thinking. <<Can you cover me while I demorph? You'll have to nod or shake your head. These ears are useless at understanding human speech.>> Without waiting for an answer, Javier began demorphing. Even if the answer was no, his wounds may have made demorphing impossible if he waited too much longer
As the changes began Javier noticed the attention the recent scuffle had drawn. <<I'm getting into the alley before we make the evening news if we haven't already. Feel free to join me. But if you decide not to, I think it is safe to assume that going home is no longer a safe option for you. We have a ship on the roof. We can drop you off wherever you would like to go.>>
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Post by Xerxes on Mar 10, 2013 19:39:38 GMT -5
And thus did Shiro retreat from battle, a metaphysical tail between his legs. Xerxes’ lips pressed together as he realized that with the various obstacles shiro had placed between himself and the dragon, Xerxes no longer had a clear shot with his throwing blades. Accuracy diminished over space with them. Besides, if it wasn’t a kill shot, Shiro could always morph it away.
Which made Xerxes wonder how that bit of ability came to be in the first place.
The dragon’s voice in his head returned his attention to the present. Sifting through its speech for only the important information, Xerxes utterly ignored the request for a nod and merely pivoted in place, holding his sleeves and and parallel to his body, allowing the knives to slide back down into the sheaths strapped to his forearms. He lowered his arms and allowed them to hang by his side as he fixed the wary crowd of spectators with a cold glare. There was no need to bring the knives out again: he was certain everyone understood his message.
Words continued flowing into his mind, though, impossible to block out. Smart, trying to get out of the public’s way. And that was an invitation Xerxes would certainly accept. He was certain this was a true Animorph this time. Shiro had indeed been convincing, but Xerxes had already fallen for the ploy. There would have been no need to stage a mock-assault in order to make Xerxes truly believe that he was actually with an Animorph. All it would’ve done would be to put him on alert.
So because he knew that the Yeerks were actually an intelligent species, Xerxes concluded that the dragon was undeniably human and an Animorph. And therefore Xerxes’ plan was concluding.
Following the lizard into the alley from a wary distance away, Xerxes continued to scan the area as he had before. There was no point in responding to the changeling; he’d already declared komodo dragon ears to be rubbish. Xerxes merely melted into the semi-shadows of the alley’s entrance, keeping a sharp eye out for any other potential source of danger. As he had in the library, Xerxes leaned against a grimy wall and pulled a booted foot up against it, putting the bowie knife within easier reach, just in case.
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Post by Javier Delgado on Mar 11, 2013 16:53:30 GMT -5
The wounds in Javier's sides sealed themselves up as his skin went from scaly green to smooth brown. His lung injury cleared up and the animorph breathed a sweet sigh of relief. Slowly, as he drug his shifting mass down the chilly alleyway, Javier's human features reemerged. Including his mouth and ears.
Javier's hair sprouted and claws retracted as he looked at the boy leaning almost casually against the wall. He is certainly an interesting character, Javier thought to himself. "Sho hersh the deal," he said with a thick lizard-tongue accent. He shook his head and tried again once his tongue was back to human.
"Excuse me. So, here's the deal. I am Javier. An animorph. A real one, unlike the guy I just fought off. And I'm chilly and tired and I want to get back in my ship, but before we can climb this fire escape I need a little bit from you." Javier paused for a moment to let what he was saying sink in.
"First of all, lets just cut to the chase. Obviously I am here because of your website. I need to know what it is that you hoped to accomplish by posting that. What is it that you know and why would you try to blackmail us with it? Secondly, I need to know that you aren't going to try any funny business if I let you on the ship. We'll need to bring you somewhere to get a catscan or something to make sure you aren't a yeerk, but after you pass that test, I will take you where you want to go, as promised. Capeesh?"
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Post by Xerxes on Mar 12, 2013 21:34:08 GMT -5
Xerxes’ cool survey of the immediate area only occasionally covered the area in which the Animorph was shifting shape. Fortunately enough for the teen. It had been bearable to watch Shiro morph earlier, but the morph had barely begun before abortion. This morph was going full-out. And despite the things Xerxes had scene, he had no desire to dwell upon the form of a wounded dragon bursting, shredding, and melting into a human’s form. Disgusting, that’s what that was.
He gave the Animorph the majority of his attention once the process was finished.
Xerxes’ only response to the first monologue was a slight tilting of his head. Javier. The introduction was new, but the proclamation of being an Animorph was obvious. The complaints, though, served to further support his unspoken claim of being free of any Yeerkish influence. Then again, Yeerks were capable of anything, but Xerxes had already chosen his side. He’d trust the young man. As much as he trusted anyone, that is.
The blonde’s respect for Javier grew as the Animorph proceeded to avoid the bush and get straight to the heart of the matter. Without relying on overt threats or physical displays of enforcing his intentions, Javier still managed to imply a no-nonsense attitude. And given the way he’d handled himself in combat, Xerxes had no doubts Javier would handle him as well.
Xerxes gave a short, slow nod in acknowledgement of Javier’s warnings, but he stared at him for several seconds without a flicker in expression as he prepared his thoughts. The moment of truth was at hand. “My goal has already been met. I wish to meet the Animorphs. I desire to join your organization.” His voice came out steady and measured, each syllable a result of careful phrasing. He also deliberately explaining what he knew, exactly. There was no need to inform Javier of his bluff. Not yet, anyways.
As for the rest, Xerxes declined to agree to the lack of funny business. His nod would suffice. The captivity and tests were expected. No Animorph worth their salt would just take someone at their word for being Yeerk-free. For all they knew, this was an elaborate ruse designed to infiltrate the Animorphs and truly figure out all their secrets. As a gesture of goodwill, Xerxes slowly reached inside his jacket sleeves and withdrew his throwing knives, attempting to appear non-threatening. Locking eyes with Javier, Xerxes tossed the blades to the other side of the alley, putting distance between him and the weapons. He had other knives, of course, but there was no need to inform Javier of those, either.
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Post by Javier Delgado on Mar 13, 2013 19:19:02 GMT -5
It took Javier a moment to absorb what exactly the boy had meant when he said his goal was already met. But when he did figure out, there was a brief period where he felt incredulous. This whole thing was just a big elaborate ruse to meet us? I risked my life to meet a fanboy? Luckily that feeling didn't last long. By the time Xerxes tossed his blades to the side, Javier had a big grin on his face.
"I'm not going to lie. I was a bit ticked off when you said you did all this just to meet us. To tell us you want to join. The Animorphs are not a group that will take just anybody, as contrary to the facts as that may seem. New members are usually initiated due to extenuating circumstances."
"But you know what? I think you could be a great asset. I really do. You were witty enough to draw us to you, you obviously are not defenseless even in a human form," Javier nodded toward the blades on the ground, "And most importantly, you had my back when things got rough. That last one is a hallmark trait of a true Animorph."
Javier jumped up and grabbed the bottom rung of the fire escape, pulling it down to the ground. "I can't speak officially of course, but I have a pretty good feeling that I am right about this next statement. Welcome to the Animorphs." Javier began climbing the ladder. Without looking back he said, "Now pack up your gear and lets get outta here."
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