I was on the bridge of our Dome ship. It was an amazing moment. I had never been on the bridge before. I’d always been stuck in my quarters, or up in the dome. It was an honor to be on the battle bridge with the full warriors, the princes, and the captain himself.
It was because I was Elfangor’s little brother. An aristh like me, a warrior-cadet, wouldn’t have been on the bridge otherwise.
Especially not an aristh who had once run into Captain Nerefir so hard he’d fallen over and ended up bruising one of his stalk eyes. It was an accident, but still, it’s just not a good idea for lowly cadets to go plowing into great heroes.
But everyone loved Elfangor, so they had to tolerate me. That’s the story of my life. If I live two hundred years, I’ll probably still be known as Elfangor’s little brother.
We came out of Z-Space, or zero space, a realm of white emptiness, back into normal space. Through the monitors I saw nothing but blackness dotted with stars. And there, just ahead of us, no more than a half million miles away, was a small, mostly blue planet.
I asked Elfangor.
Elfangor said quickly. He looked slightly sick and cast a dubious glance at Captain Nerefir.
I guess I had been thought-speaking a little loudly. Elfangor was worried that War-Prince Nerefir might have overheard. But I was sure I hadn’t been that loud. I mean, I really didn’t think that —
Captain Nerefir said.
Elfangor shot me a poisonous look.
I think my brother would have liked to throw me out of the nearest airlock right at that moment.
Slowly Nerefir turned his two main eyes toward me. He was a frightening old Andalite. A great warrior. A great hero. Elfangor’s idol. He nodded. He slowly winked one eye at Elfangor.
Suddenly . . .
the warrior at the sensor station cried.
another warrior cried.
Captain Nerefir turned his face and his main eyes toward my brother, while his stalk eyes kept watch on the monitors. The humor was gone from his face.
But Elfangor hadn’t waited for orders. He was already halfway out the door. My tail banged into the doorway as I plowed after him.
Elfangor said.
I said.
I said. But a warrior, even a warrior-cadet, has to obey orders. Elfangor was my brother. He was also my prince.
I could hear the thought-speak announcements coming from the bridge:
Elfangor and I came to a pair of dropshafts. Warriors were zooming down, heading for the fighter bays. I would have to go up to reach the dome. The upward dropshaft was empty.
It made me angry. Everyone was fighting but me. When it was all over, Elfangor would be an even bigger hero, and I would still be the little brother. The child.
Elfangor hesitated for just a moment before rushing on. He arched his tail forward. I reached forward with my own tail, arching it up over my back. We touched tail blades.
my brother said.
I said, sounding very stiff and formal. But as he turned to enter the dropshaft, I couldn’t let him go thinking I was mad at him. I said,
he said with a laugh.
It was the last I saw of him.
He disappeared down the dropshaft. I went upward to the great dome. The dome was the heart of our ship. It was a vast, round, open plain of grass and trees and running water from our home planet, all covered by a transparent dome.
I was alone there. The only nonwarrior on the great ship. The only one without a battle to fight.
I could see the blue planet above me, hanging in a black sky. It had a moon, just a dead ball of dust. But the planet looked alive. I could see white clouds swirling. Its yellow sun’s light sparkled off the vast oceans.
This planet was known to be inhabited by a reasonably intelligent species. We had learned a little about them in school.
My main eyes were drawn to the brilliant flares of engine exhaust as our fighters lanced toward the onrushing Yeerks.
I was far from the battle bridge now, beyond the range of their thought-speak. I heard nothing in my head. And my ears heard only the sound of a gentle, artificial breeze ruffling the leaves of the trees. I stood on blue-green grass and watched tiny pinpoints of light as the battle was joined in orbit above the blue planet.
And then . . . I felt it. A tremor that rolled through my mind. A wave of coldness . . . a premonition. Like a waking nightmare.
I turned my stalk eyes away from battle, toward the dead moon of the blue planet. And there I saw it. A black shape against the gray-white light of the moon. A shape like some twisted battle-ax.