The Beginning
The clopping of hooves was a constant sound aboard the ship. Eight hooves to be precise, though, four of those were more active than the others. The pilot was accustomed to the confined space inside his ship, but his daughter was less so.
Normally she would not be on a fighter ship, Andalites did not normally trust other races and females were rarely allowed in the military. But Luna was a special case, raised by one their heroes, she was allowed to try her hoof at being a soldier. Between her offensive capabilities and those Princes and War Princes who had fought beside Elfangor, Luna was able to rise against the normally prejudiced society and become a warrior. This was only her first time in a fighter ship.
Prince Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul was an experienced hero of his people. He understood that a young cadet would feel very frustrated at being locked in a fighter shuttle for long periods of time, and he understood that she was even more claustrophobic than the average andalite. After all, she was a creature of the sky as much as of the fields, and she wanted desperately to spread her wings.
But the constant clop of her hooves on the floor was annoying. <Luna, perhaps you should take a nap.>
<I'm not sleepy.> she thought spoke back to him.
<Well, can you sit still?>
<No.>
Elfangor was about ready to give her an order to sit still, but that's when they came under attack. Yeerk bug fighters flanked their ship and opened fire, they took a few hits before Elfangor pulled up out of the path of the lazers. The dog fight continued for several minutes until the more experienced warrior maneuvered his ship to line both Yeerk ships up with his weapon.
<Are we damaged?> Luna asked as she came up next to him.
<We are not.>
<Um...I think they shall fix that.> her eyes widened as she saw it.
Coming in range was an armada of yeerk ships. They swarmed like angry insects from their base, the pool ship. And amongst the swarm was the blade ship, a vessel given to only the highest ranking yeerks, the Vissers.
The yeerks were opposed by an equally destructive force, an andalite dome ship and its fleet of fighters piloted by their best warriors.
“Hey, are you ok?”
The speaker shook her shoulder, and Luna's horn was at the person's throat in a moment. <Where are we?>
“My name is Jake….” the biped spoke slowly and carefully “...your father is outside, he's hurt but he wanted us to help you.”
Luna was out of the ship and on the ground next to her father before the other bipeds knew what was happening.
“That's a unicorn, with wings….are we crazy?”
“Shut up, Marco.” a somewhat aggressive voice told the other one.
Elfangor was badly burned on one side of his body, his breathing was rough, and there was blood on him. Blood that was still fresh. Luna felt a wave of dizziness come over her, when it passed she held a hoof to her head and felt the dampness of her own blood.
<Luna, this is where we part ways….> Elfangor held a seven fingered hand to her head.
<No!> she denied it as he pulled her into what would be their last hug.
<You must help them fight. Help them survive. Help them save this world.>
<Father…>
Jake walked back out of the ship with something in his hand. “Is this what you asked me to find?”
<Yes.> Elfangor struggled to raise himself up, but he did not have the strength. <Bring it to me, and all of you gather around it.>
<Father, no!> Luna protested him with an alarmed expression. <You will be dishonored!>
<It is the only thing I can give them that will help them fight the yeerks.> Elfangor explained as he looked at her with all four of his eyes. <I will not leave them defenseless.>
Luna knew better than to argue, her father put more value in doing what is right than in what others thought of him. After all, he had taken her in despite the disapproval of the other andalites. She said nothing more as he explained to the humans what threat they now faced, and the limitations of the power they now had.
<We must go, now> Luna warned them as she saw the lights of two bug fighters in the sky, and she knew what would follow them.
<Go now, run!> Elfangor urged them <I will give you what time I can>
The five humans followed her as she ran to hide. Luna stopped and turned back to watch, she wanted to go back….and if he didn't show, she would. But Luna's hopes were dashed when the blade ship, looking like a god's giant battle ax, landed in the construction site. She turned away.
<Come, we must go!> she told the humans in private thought speak.
“We aren't going to help him?” the tall angry looking human asked.
<We cannot save your world if we are dead> Luna replied bluntly. <If we stay, we die>
As if to emphasize her point, an explosion lit up the night as one of the ships were destroyed. They followed her as she ran.
Later that night, Luna stood in the barn that the dark skinned human, Cassie, had offered her to rest in. Cassie had also offered to tend to her wounds, but Luna had declined in favor of using a demonstration of the morphing power to heal herself. After acquiring the DNA of a flying creature called an owl, she had morphed into the animal and returned to her own form to reveal her now nonexistent wounds.
Now alone in the barn, hidden away so Cassie’s parents would not find her, Luna found rest impossible. Her father was gone, she was stranded on a primitive world, and she was now responsible for the safety of an entire planet with only five inexperienced youths to fight the Yeerks with.
“Some warrior I am turning out to be.” Luna said to herself as she folded her wings against her blue fur and crossed her hooves under her chin as a pillow. Sleep finally came to her a little before dawn.