#Taxxons are precious and I love them

[sarifel-corrisafid-ilxhel]

man... thank you so much for the amount of thought you have put into Taxxons. i have always thought that they deserved better in the books and you have been doing such good work on that regard. is there any extra headcanons you have about them that haven't made it into other posts?

There is, actually! And it’s one I am still working on, but here’s the rough version!

1. The Living Hive

In my imagining, the Living Hive is actually a relatively new visitor to the Taxxon homeworld. It was, initially, a parasitic Cordyceps-like fungus with latent psychic abilities that was accidentally delivered to the planet by a passing starship. At the time, the Taxxons were feral and undeveloped, and a nearby hive was infected by the fungus. At the time, the Taxxon homeworld was a lush tropical swamp, with plenty of food. We’ll get to what happened to that in a moment.

Symptoms of infection by the fungus were initially a breakdown of the social structure of a Taxxon hive, followed by a new order directed by the fungus swiftly taking it’s place. From there, the Taxxon hive would begin to expand and seek more food to grow the reach of the fungus to other nearby hives. If an infected Taxxon died inside a hive that was not infected, the Taxxon’s body would sprout into a red fungal mound that would then release spores, infecting the Taxxons there.

As the distances involved increased and the required resources to sustain the many drones controlled by the fungus became a greater burden, the fungus began to increase the ingelligence of the drone Taxxons. Smarter Taxxons gathered more resources, which supported the expansion efforts of the fungus, which in turn forced the fungus to make the drones smarter. This created a feedback loop until a sense of morality developed within the system. Suddenly, the fungus wasn’t expanding because it wanted to expand. Suddenly it was expanding because it recognized it *needed* to take care of the Taxxons. Any brakes on the feedback loop came off as this self-awareness spread to the Taxxons themselves. The increase in the number of perspectives fed the intelligence cycle even further. Suddenly the Taxxons weren’t dying of the fungus anymore, they were living until they died of natural causes and then the fungus would sprout from their bodies after-the-fact. Suddenly the Taxxons had ideas on how to protect their young better, how to nurture the wounded and the sick, et cetera. The Taxxon population exploded.

Religion came almost immediately. The newly-enlightened Taxxons were aware that they had only recently been enlightened. The memories of every Taxxon ever infected with the fungus were within the hive mind. Ancestor worship and worship of the fungus itself- the Living Hive, Light of the Taxxons, Bringer of Knowledge- dominate Taxxon religion. From a theological standpoint, the Taxxons have it fairly easy: Their faith evidences itself credibly. They know their memories will be passed on, they know they were “chosen” and “elevated” by this fungus from another planet, and they can have conversations with their “god” across any distance whenever they want.

Astronomy quickly followed that. If their benefactor came from somewhere else, where? Taxxons began looking at the stars and tried to imagine where their fungal symbiote had come from, and what kind of paradise that world must be.

2. Disaster

Around 800 Earth years ago, a brilliant flash of light flooded the sky of the Taxxon homeworld, bright as their Sun at night and burning through the day. At first, curious Taxxons flocked to the surface to see the glowing cloud that grew and grew through the days, wondering what it could have been. Even the Living Hive was stumped, but a sense of dread quickly filled the Taxxons. Whatever the flash had been, whatever it meant, they knew it wasn’t good.

A few days later, hunter-gatherers began to report something was wrong. Their favored prey animals were diseased, rotting away and dying all around them. In every direction. At every hive. Across the entire planet. Taxxons that had been on the surface at the time of the brilliant flash began to succumb to the same withering disease, prompting a panic. The worst-hit hives, those that had been on the side facing the flash when it happened, saw losses up to eighty percent of their populations. The Taxxon homeworld had been hit by a gamma ray burst.

The Taxxons survived this disaster, but their world was permanently changed. The ecosystem collapse was sudden and irreversible with 97% of above-ground life being wiped out by the flash. On the side that faced the flash directly, the soil had been sterilized ten meters down. Taxxons that had been less than 30 meters down died. Taxxon eggs 45 meters down wouldn’t hatch. The stench of rotting plants and animals permeated the years that followed as global desertification set in. The memory of the years before the flash left the Taxxons painfully aware of how things had been, of how at one point they had never wanted for food. This memory burned into every Taxxon so deeply that it fueled a deep-seated, all-consuming hunger that would never leave.

3. Visitors from the Sky

It was the Skrit-Na who first braved the supernova remnants in search for the riches of civilizations destroyed by the blast. When they found the Taxxon Homeworld, they initially wrote it off as sterilized. They couldn’t deny that it had rich material resources and curious cave systems that looked artificial. But there was no one to trade with. No one to argue with the first captain who set down and claimed the planet as a mining base. No one to care when that captain, and his crew, mysteriously vanished.

Other Skrit-Na came after, wondering what had happened to that enterprising captain. It was these follow-up expeditions that discovered the Taxxon survivors. Rather than condemn the Taxxons, however, the Skrit-Na saw an opportunity. Work for food. Gems and ores flowed to fill the holds of Skrit-Na freighters, while food and limited technology were given to the Taxxons. The Skrit-Na were never known for their charity, however, and the aid they offered was only just enough to keep the Taxxons alive. Just enough to keep the ore flowing.

This arrangement continued through the centuries. Other trading races sometimes made contact with the Taxxons- The friendly Desbadeen. The curious Ongachic. The meddlesome Andalites. But the Skrit-Na made it clear that the Taxxons were loyal to them and them alone. No one knew enough about the Skrit-Na to say no, and the Taxxons weren’t in any position to argue.

One day, seemingly out of nowhere, a different ship landed. One of the newest Andalite freighters, it looked like, but it was the strangest thing. The creatures that came out of the freighter weren’t Andalites at all. Instead, a motley assortment of creatures emerged and identified themselves with one name: Yeerks.

The Yeerks had heard about the Taxxons through the Skrit-Na and explained that they knew what it was like to be oppressed. They were on the run from their former oppressors, the Andalites, and offered to cooperate with the Taxxons. The Yeerks could supply more food and technology than the Skrit-Na were willing to, including advanced Andalite technology. They would help the Taxxons throw off the Skrit-Na and provide as much food as the Yeerk Empire could find for the Taxxons in exchange for two things: The Yeerks wanted the Taxxon homeworld as an industrial center, and the Yeerks wanted some Taxxons as hosts for the unhosted Yeerks still in the freighters.

Things had been particularly dire in recent months for the Taxxons. Skrit-Na food shipments had been repeatedly driven off by unknown pirates and the Taxxons were on the verge of starvation. It was undeniable that the Skrit-Na had been horrible to the Taxxons, and the Yeerks seemed genuine in their offer. The Living Hive had no other choice but to accept.

The treachery of the Yeerks was subtle at first. Rather than chase off the Skrit-Na, the Yeerks simply bought the rights to the planet, sending the Skrit-Na off rich and happy. From there, the treacheries grew. More hosts were needed. More resources were needed. Slaves were needed. And then the Yeerks did the unthinkable. They began lacing the food they provided to the Taxxons with anti-fungal medications, severing those Taxxons from the Living Hive and reducing them to near-feral beasts. The foundation for the Taxxon Rebellion was laid.

4. The Taxxon Insurrection

Initial efforts by the Taxxons to resist the Yeerks were ineffective. When the Taxxons refused to concede to further Yeerk demands, the Yeerks simply began taking things by force. They brought strange reptilian creatures covered in blades to the Taxxon homeworld to protect Yeerk interests. Taxxon warriors were cut down in the thousands by only a few dozen Hork-Bajir Controllers. The Taxxons retreated further and further across their planet until they were limited to a handful of mountainous regions. This led to a stalemate- The Yeerks couldn’t spare the resources to assault the Taxxon strongholds in the mountains, and the Taxxons couldn’t make a dent against the Yeerk forces. Victories were few and far between.

It was at this point that something peculiar happened. Three Andalites, chasing a Skrit-Na freighter to the Taxxon homeworld, landed and began trying to disrupt the Yeerk operation. Unknown to the Taxxons at the time, the Andalites had developed the ability to morph, and these three disguised themselves as Taxxons. This, however, made them available to the Living Hive, and it noticed this with great interest. The Living Hive attempted to reach out to them for help, but something went wrong. The Taxxon Hunger, present within the link, overwhelmed the Andalites and drove one to demorph. A short while later, the second demorphed. The third, however, never did. This Andalite, Arbron-Nesireuth-Cariwell, was a young Andalite who had been easily overwhelmed by the flood of Taxxon hunger. The Living Hive tried again and again to make some sort of contact with this Andalite, unaware of what it had done until it was too late. By the time Arbron was able to reassert control over his body, the brief window in which he could return to Andalite form had passed.

Arbron-Nesireuth-Cariwell was inexperienced by Andalite standards, but his knowledge of military tactics eclipsed anything the Taxxons had known before. In his own desperation after his entrapment, he found that the Taxxons needed him, and he needed somewhere to belong. He devoted himself to the Living Hive as the Taxxon General One-With-Smiling-Eyes. From there, the fortune of the Taxxons began to change.

5. Liberation

The newly-minted General of the Taxxons did not experience great success, not at first. His initial raid on a Yeerk spaceport inflicted serious damage but came with a heavy cost- Close to 67% of the Taxxons sent to fight the Yeerks never returned. Another 12% were captured. But with each battle the Taxxons faced, they knew more about how to fight the Yeerks. Each defeat brought them closer and closer to an eventual victory by teaching them more about their enemy.

The Yeerks abandoned treating their Taxxon slaves with anti-fungal medications, finding it preferable to keep the Taxxons sentient and able to fly their Bug Fighters. The Living Hive could overwhelm the Yeerks inside those Taxxons and seize control of Bug Fighters, attacking Yeerk assets from the sky. The Yeerks began placing a Hork-Bajir inside every Bug Fighter to put down the rebellious Taxxon pilots.

The Taxxons could sabotage the construction of the various bases the Yeerks needed on different planets. Dam failures on the Hork-Bajir homeworld killed hundreds of thousands of Yeerks. The Yeerks began having all of the work performed double-checked by Gedd-Controllers, and Taxxons suspected of being rebels were immediately fed to their feral brethren.

When the Yeerks finally realized the threat posed by the Taxxon General and the Living Hive, they began assaulting the mountain strongholds one by one. The battles to save the nodes of the Living Hive were desperate and fierce, but nothing could have prepared the Taxxons for the monstrous creature that led each charge. The Andalite-Controller known then as Visser Two devastated Taxxon forces singlehandedly.

Aware of Arbron’s ties to Visser Two’s host, the Living Hive sent him to safety by having him pose as a simple worker Taxxon during one of these assaults. The worker Taxxons were of no consequence to the Yeerks and were often left un-infested. They followed orders or they died. But here, the General would be free to plot and continue the war even after the last of the Taxxon strongholds had fallen. Arbron was captured, as planned, and sent off to a distant planet nearly 600 light-years away. The Living Hive feigned defeat, preserving the last of the mountain strongholds by keeping it secret. When the time came, the Taxxons hoped, they would rise up again. But not now. Not while they were so weak.

Visser Two was eventually demoted to Visser Three following a failure on some planet the Taxxons had never heard of, and by a stroke of luck was assigned to manage the invasion same backwater planet Arbron had been sent to. The natives of that planet were unaware of the Yeerk invasion, it seemed, but the Andalites were not. Despite the failure of the Andalite fleet to save that distant planet, a small band of Andalites survived and began fighting the Yeerks. When they attacked, Arbron and his fellow free Taxxons would hit Yeerk forces from behind under the guise of a Taxxon feeding frenzy. Arbron came close to death at the claws of a vicious tiger or the blade of a familiar-looking aristh, but he escaped death each and every time. When the Yeerk Peace Movement rose, the free Taxxons allied with them and quietly resumed sabotaging Yeerk equipment. When the Free Hork-Bajir rebels raided Yeerk facilities, Arbron quietly communicated with them to coordinate their efforts. When the Animorphs took control of a subway train and filled it with high-explosives, Arbron had his workers dig S-shaped tunnels and drag innocents inside to protect them from the blast. And when the California National Guard staged a desperate ground assault against the Pool Ship as it lifted off from the surface in the final battle, Taxxons raced along under the surface and pulled injured soldiers to safety in their tunnels.

The Living Hive coordinated free Taxxons across the Empire through all of this. When the little uprising on Earth flared into battle that required the full attention of the Yeerk Empire, the Yeerks made mistakes. The Hork-Bajir guards on the Taxxon Homeworld were transferred away, replaced with weaker Human-Controllers. Bug Fighters and Yeerk Shuttles were called away by the hundreds, leaving only a token force behind to protect the Yeerk assets there. As Arbron negotiated with the Animorphs and the Yeerk traitor, the Living Hive planned. And as the free Taxxons joined with the free Hork-Bajir and Human military forces to retake Los Angeles, the Living Hive coordinated assaults by Taxxons on every planet and ship controlled by the Yeerk Empire. Spaceports were destroyed as the ground beneath them gave way, collapsing into Taxxon-dug tunnels. Hork-Bajir warriors were swallowed up from below, never able to react to their attackers. Bug Fighters turned against the freighters and cruisers they escorted. The Taxxon Homeworld was liberated only minutes after the surrender of Visser One at Earth, and the general Taxxon uprising broke the back of Yeerk forces across the Empire. For the Andalite warships participating in a surprise offensive against the Yeerks, the timing couldn’t have been better. The Yeerk Empire fell from a thousand worlds to seven in less than a week.

When Prince Arbron-Nesireuth-Cariwell, Taxxon general and Andalite war-hero, was killed by poachers in the Amazon rainforest in 2001, his memories were taken into the Living Hive like every Taxxon’s were. The Taxxons on Earth had chosen to try to escape their Hunger by becoming snakes, an act the Living Hive had conceded was in their best interests. But that option was not available for every Taxxon- Those on the Homeworld, and those being returned to the Homeworld from other planets that had been conquered by the Yeerks, were still desperate for food. Food poured in from grateful planets that owed their freedom, in part or in whole, to the Taxxon uprising, but it was never enough. Years of neglect and outright abuse by the Yeerk Empire had further ravaged the Taxxon homeworld’s ecosystem, and it was with a heavy conscience that the Taxxons and Living Hive began searching the stars again, hoping to find a new home.

[warriorlid14]

Ani Reread Book 1: Part 1

I really, really hope I’ll finish these. Spoilers for book 1 and I will try to keep it at just spoilers for book 1.

“My name is Jake”- ah, yes. an epic beginning to an epic book series.

I love how they’re all like “I’ll never tell you where I live, for safety reasons. Maybe it’s your town!” Like, no, hon. I may not now the exact location but I get plenty of context clues. Ahem: definitely a town, but near a big city. Near a beach. Near a mountain range. Near a national forest. Conclusion: definitely not my town.

Jake’s being a cutie already and I’m barely on page two. He’s all like: “No, I don’t care that I didn’t make into the team. I mean, I’m just not as good as my big brother and we won’t hang out much anymore, but it doesn’t bug me. It’s not a big deal!!” I love him.

“So, like maybe I’ll walk home with you guys.” Omg, he practiced that didn’t he? It gives me so many “I’m trying to be cool but please, please let me hang out with you guys” vibes. I love Tobias.

“I guess you could say I kind of like Cassie.” Precious. Children.

*detailed explanation of why it’s a horrible, terrible idea to cut through the abandoned construction site* “So anyway, we crossed the road and headed into the abandoned construction site.”  Iconic, but guuuuuuuys.

Tobias is giving me mad Luna vibes. I mean, throughout the entire book series, but mainly in the first few books.

Omg, there’s a spaceship landing in front of them and they’re arguing about Star Trek. This is not the last time this happens. ALSO, reason 64474558 why this series wouldn’t work in modern day: they’d all be streaming this and get captured within the hour.

It’s been 11 years since I first started reading this series and the entire Elfangor scene is still powerful. Also the way these kids all rush to help this dying alien even as their entire worlds are being rocked is so heartwarming.

“Never remain in animal form for more than two of your Earth hours. Never!” Foreshadowing. Foreshadowing. Foreshadowing.

“No, we’ll stay with you.” RACHEL. MY LOVE.

God, this scene is horrifying, especially with all the descriptions of the hork-bajir and taxxons.

I’d forgotten how much of a cartoon-like villain Visser Three can be. Until, ya know, he murders Elfangor. 

Rachel comforting her friends while being terrified herself fills me with joy,

Only 42 pages into the first book, not even a third of the way through, and these kids have already been traumatized for life.

“So I figured if the aliens were going to chase anyone, it ought to be us.” Anyone who sorts Jake and Rachel into anything other Gryffindor is lying to themselves.

I’ll never get over the fact that Tobias named his cat “Dude”. What a dork. Also, Jake knowing something wrong because Tobias is happy and energetic. In this economy?

So obviously Jake ends up being the best choice for a leader, but it’s interesting how he became the leader. One, Tobias appointed him, and obviously Tobias would. He’s Jake, the guy who saved him from bullies one time and has been nothing but decent to him since. He holds him on a pedestal, something which makes for an interesting dynamic when Jake makes mistakes later on. And for the rest of the team, Jake is also the obvious choice. Because Jake has a personal relationship with all of them. He’s Rachel’s cousin, Marco’s best friend, Cassie’s crush. At least for the first few books, I’m not sure the team would’ve stayed such a solidified unit if Jake weren’t the connecting factor between all of them.

Wow, they make it really clear that Tom’s a controller straight off the bat, huh?

OKAY. I will finish there. I wrote much more than intended and I’m only a third of the way through. The rest shouldn’t be as long until I get to the Yeerk Pool scene.

[warriorlid14]

Ani Re-read: Book 2 Pt. 2

“We’re still learning about thought-speech. We know there are limits on how far it can be ‘heard.’ But we aren’t sure what the limits are.” Does anyone ever? Does K.A.A know? Because these kids constantly fly together and have to be flying separately. So the reach has to be longer than however big Chapman’s house is, right?

Sooo... how many controllers have secret rooms in their homes? Because, like, that’s a big project. I don’t question much how the yeerk pool was built. But having a secret basement in all high-ranking controller’s homes? All the construction workers in this town are probably controllers. 

“May the Kandrona shine and strengthen you.” ... I really love that, not gonna lie.

“It was a hologram, I knew.” I guess the yeerks upgraded to zoom premium. For just $59.99/mo you too can have your boss virtually come into your home to yell at you.

“And when the Council of Thirteen is angry with me, I am angry with you.” Okay, I LOVE to read about yeerk bureaucracy. 

“‘What a ferocious little beast,’ Visser Three said approvingly.” And so the tales of Visser Three the Cat Person begin. Up next he’ll move from house cats to tigers.

“But [Visser Three] was not a creature who made impetuous decisions.” HAHAHAHAHA. 

“Claws and teeth  and ferocity mixed with subtlety to manipulate creatures larger than itself. A worthy creature.” Okay, most accurate description of a cat ever. But also! Guys! Get Visser Three a cat!

“I fed you his brain and made you my lieutenant. But I can suck you back out again if you fail me. Would you like to see what happened to the last fool who failed me?” Anyways, unionize the yeerks.

OH NO, I’VE MADE SO MANY COMMENTS AND I HAVEN’T EVEN GOTTEN TO MELISSA. Okay, enough about yeerk politics.

Okay, but like. There apparently exists a creature in the Yeerk homeworld who evolved SPECIFICALLY to suck yeerks out of their host bodies. Think about that for a second. (I’m not saying it’s improbable, just very disturbing.)

“That Andalite-controlling scum... I wish the Council of Thirteen would find out what kind of a mess he’s making on this planet.” Okay, I know I said I’d stop talking about yeerk politics, but come on, this is golden. And also I forgot how early we get into it.

Okay, but this scene? Where the Chapmans use endearments for Melissa, but there’s no feelings behind it? Oh, my heart.

“This was the kind of horror that made you cry instead of scream.” Yeah.

“Melissa sat down on her bed and began sobbing.” D: same tho

“What did I do, Fluffer?... Why don’t they love me anymore?” Oh, baby. Oh, honey. You precious child.

(I’m crying over Melissa but also a little bit over Rachel understanding that the atrocity of the yeerk war runs way deeper than they know.)

“Jake put his hand over Marco’s mouth. ‘People? And I use that term loosely. We need to decide what we’re doing next.’“ Whoever said Jake isn’t funny (me), is a liar (also me).

“Marco’s voice always cracked when he mentioned his mom.”  BABY.

“... Jake was about to say something impatient. And I was feeling the same way, like Marco just needed to deal with reality.” YEAH, RACHEL. THE REALITY THAT HIS MOM IS DEAD AND HIS DAD FELL APART AND IF SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HIM, LIKE, DIE IN A BLOODY WAR, HIS DAD WOULD FALL APART.

“But Cassie put her arm on Marco’s arm. ‘Don’t ever let any of this get in the way of spending time with your dad.’“ dhfjfgkdsdgui   I love Cassie so much.

“I hadn’t told anyone about Visser Three telling Chapman to kill me.” GODAMNIT, RACHEL. But, okay, I forgive you this time. Pls go comfort Melissa.

“What are you going to do, turn into a flea and ride on my back?” HAHAHA.

“It was a dark and stormy night. Sorry, I’ve always wanted to write that.” Rachel, you fucking dork. I love you.

Okay, so. Iniss is just sitting there, doing nothing? Maybe they’re arguing with Chapman? Replaying old memories or movies? Like, yeerks are not boring. They enjoy human activities. idk, maybe Iniss only lives for bureaucracy. 

“I’m a flea... I’m on your back.” HAHAHAHA. But also, Jake. you almost blew her cover.

“Do you know how tiring it is to have an uncooperative host?” Oh noooo. A person who refuses to be enslaved?? Fuck you, Iniss.

They’re. Fighting. For. Their. Daughter.

“‘I didn’t notice you.’ Melissa stepped back like she’d been slapped. ‘But Daddy, I was crying.’“ .... I’m not crying. Nope. Not crying.

Okay, but the entire scene where Rachel’s trying to get Jake to leave because she doesn’t want him to be killed as well? Yeah.

“Fear is like a worm inside you. It eats you. It chews your guts. It bores holes in your heart. It makes you feel hollow. Empty. Alone.” Hmm. Yeah. TOTALLY needed that before I go to sleep.

“On the edge of absolute panic, I let the cat mind take over.” Maybe one day I’ll right an essay about how the animorphs use their animal minds to escape.

“I had to die in this body, and take my secret with me.” She is SO scared, but always putting her friends before her. How do people hate her?

“I agreed to surrender my freedom... but only if you would spare my daughter.” ���If you harm my daughter I will fight you. I will fight you forever.”

*deep breaths*... Not crying.... Okay, SO:

Chapman became a controller to save his daughter. But now the yeerks don’t give her any affection. So she thinks her parents don’t love her. When in reality they love her more than anything in the world. Enough to put up with such mental anguish. This freaking, series, man.

Also. Now I’m going to talk about voluntary controllers. (SPOILERS FOR FUTURE BOOKS)

The thing that bugs me is that there’s no clear distinction between voluntary controllers. As in, Chapman will continue to be referred to as a voluntary controller. Which, like, technically he is? But also, no. Chapman is not cooperating with the yeerks (voluntaries in #1). He is not willingly bringing in more recruits (Taylor). Or using his resources to help them (Joe Bob Finestra). All he is doing is not resisting. He’s not fighting. Which by the way, is a fight that he would lose anyway. By this logic, Tom almost became a voluntary controller because he agreed to stop fighting if the yeerks spared Jake.

Also, the Sharing members. People who accepted to become full-members without realizing what it meant until it was too late. Yeah, you know who did that? Tobias. In MM4. And instantly HATED himself and never accepted the yeerk. Yet, he is still called a voluntary controller.

Even Taylor, y’all. She was a vulnerable girl who went through a horrifying, traumatizing experience. And the yeerks exploited her vulnerabilities It is the people that are ostracized by society that get targeted by the yeerks. And, look, obviously the solution is never “I’m going to help enslave society”, but I doubt most people even know what they’re signing up for. And later just try to survive, The Sharing is literally a cult. (And also, Taylor later regretted becoming a voluntary controller)

I’m not saying that the animorphs are unsympathetic, because they’re not. They understand that the yeerks are manipulative assholes. I just wish that the term “voluntary controller” wasn’t that broad because it’s a little more complicated than “evil people who betrayed their species for power”.

END OF SPOILERS.

Is this the first instance of taxxon canibalism in the series? Or did it come up in the first book?

So, yeah, the earthmovers were a complete deus ex maachina.. I’m not super mad about it, honestly.

Rachel left Melissa a note!!! Lovely.

Okay, so final thoughts: I really liked this book this second time around. Not that I didn’t like it the first time, but one, I read the series out of order. Two, it’s not a huge mission book. And it’s placed between the first book and the first Tobias book, which is a HUGE book considering what has happened to him. But this book really gives us a more personal look on what the yeerks are doing to this one specific family instead of focusing on the bigger picture. And that’s powerful. Because as much as they’re fighting to protect everyone, they’re mostly fighting to protect their families and friends. At least at first. 

(I would link the previous post, but tumblr apparently made it disappear. Can’t find it and I’m mad)