Yeerk
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A Yeerk is a fictional extraterrestrial species from the book and television series Animorphs. It is a parasite that takes over the mind of another being by way of infestation through the ear canal. It resembles a small, grey-green slug not six-inches long. Yeerks in their natural state have decent senses of smell, touch and hearing, but they are blind until they enter a host, as they do not have eyes. They communicate in their natural state using a language of ultrasonic squeaks, and use sonar to get a basic picture of the surroundings. The process of infestation by a Yeerk is painless: a numbing chemical is secreted to deaden and dilate the ear canal itself so that the sluglike Yeerk will not cause any physical harm to the host. It is able to manipulate and puncture a variety of alien ear canal structures including bone and membrane to reach the brain, although the mechanics of this are not well described.
After the process of infestation, the Yeerk flattens itself into what has been described as "hammered-out Silly Putty" and sinks into all of the cracks and crevices of the brain. From there, all control is submitted involuntarily to the Yeerk. The host has no control over itself anymore.
And, since the Yeerk has access to all parts of the brain, it is able to pass flawlessly as its host (now called a Controller) so that nobody else suspects that there is, in fact, a secret invasion of their planet.
However, the Yeerk parasites cannot stay within their host for more than 3 Earth days. After this period of time, they need to bathe in a Yeerk pool and absorb Kandrona rays, the rays of the Yeerk home sun. Without these rays, a Yeerk eventually starves. However, there is a way for Yeerks to survive without Kandrona rays: to eat other Yeerks. This cannibalism is not common however and is only displayed by one Yeerk, Esplin 9466 the lesser (Visser 3's twin sibling; see below), after being cut off from Yeerk society by his twin. Yeerks may also survive a lack of Kandrona rays by consuming instant maple and ginger oatmeal, although its effects are narcotic and cause the Yeerk to become insane, trapped within its host indeterminately, without the need to feed in a Yeerk pool. The host may regain some control of its body from time to time, while the Yeerk has lapsed into narcotic-induced lack of control. Usually the Yeerk is not intelligible after full addiction has occurred, since the chemicals in the oatmeal damage part of its brain stem.
Yeerks inhabit a homeworld with a dark green and yellow, lightning-torn sky. The ground is largely dark rich soil and roughly circular Yeerk pools dot the surface, presumably connected to each other somehow but this is not explained. Yeerk pool water is a sludgy grey, filled with nutrients Yeerks need besides Kandrona rays. There are no more than a hundred animal species on the Yeerk homeworld, among them the Gedd species, which became the Yeerks' natural host, nearly a symbiotic relationship. This month (January 2006) is the Yeerk date: Generation 705, beginning-cycle. The mid-cycle would start sometime in September 2006 (probably the 2nd to the 5th).
Sometime on or before the Earth year 1966 (Yeerk date: Generation 685, mid-cycle; each Generation is roughly two Earth years and divided into three cycles) the first Andalites arrived on the Yeerk homeworld, led by the Andalite Prince Seerow. Seerow pitied the Yeerks' physical drawbacks despite their capacity to learn, and set up the Andalite-Yeerk Peace and Cooperation Center on the Yeerk homeworld. He and other Andalites taught the Yeerks how to write down the Yeerk language phonetically, and taught them what lay beyond their green-clouded sky. Once armed with the knowledge of space-faring technology and similar sciences certain Yeerks rebelled against the Andalites, taking them off-guard and killing many people during the escape with several small Andalite ships and a few transports. The Yeerks stopped on the far side of their planet to syphon up large quantities of Yeerks from Yeerk pools before fleeing the planet, eventually to become the Yeerk Empire. Andalite forces began to patrol the Yeerk homeworld in orbit to make sure no more Yeerks entered, attempted contact or attempted to leave.
Yeerks reproduce by fission. Three parent Yeerks merge into a single organism, which then breaks apart into hundreds of separate grubs, destroying the parents in the process. Yeerk names end in numbers, which designate which number grub they are (i.e. Esplin 9466 is the nine thousandth, four hundredth, and sixty-sixth grub to emerge from the Esplin tri-parent). The double number at the end of the name means twins; thus, Esplin 9466 (also known as the infamous Visser 3, who eventually becomes Visser 1) has a twin. As a note, earlier in the series, this number was claimed to be a rank, indicating that Yeerks are likely born with one number and can advance to a higher number rank, or be demoted to a lower one.
Citizens of the Yeerk Empire may rise above the rank of 100, after which they are designated as "sub-vissers", similar to lieutenants. After being promoted above sub-visser level, Yeerks may become one of 47 Vissers, which are equivalent to generals or to Andalite Princes.
The head of the Yeerk Empire is the Council of Thirteen, the leader of which is the enigmatic Yeerk Emperor. Of the thirteen council members, two remain always concealed as decoys for the Emperor's true identity. They wear very dark red robes, almost black, and those Council members who have Hork-Bajir hosts wear a thin mesh under the robes to prevent them from tearing.
There is a faction of Yeerks who have formed an entity known as the Yeerk Peace Faction, which opposes the wars led by the Empire in secret and whose members, who may be Yeerks and their hosts, oppose involuntary infestation.
The Yeerk Empire was gutted devastatingly with the death of seventeen thousand Yeerks flushed from the Yeerk Pool Ship's onboard pool during the final blatant attack on Earth. The Empire's loss of Earth was caused largely by the Animorphs, and surrendered Yeerks were given amnesty by the Andalite military if they became a nothlit, or trapped in one morph forever. A single Blade Ship escaped with the intent of creating a new Yeerk Empire and has allied with a dangerous, cult-like, otherworldy entity known only as The One.
Also, there exists an offshoot of the Yeerk race that was taken from the homeworld millennia ago: the Yoort. The Yoort have long since changed from being parasites, and have become symbionts; They merged with a species created by them, the Isk, with whom they have a symbiotic relationship. The joint species is called Iskoort.
Yeerk technology
Yeerk technology is largely stolen from other races, although the Yeerks themselves appear to have a great capacity to learn and create new technology with pieces of alien technology. Yeerk technology and ships include:
- Dracon beams - handheld or cannon weapons that emit a painful red beam of energy. Powered by energy cells. Dracon beams have ten settings, the most powerful of which can punch a hole straight through ten feet of solid titanium. Modified from Andalite shredders.
- Yeerk hand-held computers - small green squares that emit a holographic, translucent screen.
- Hunter-killer robots - medium-sized spheres with a single lens that senses movement as a threat and fires a killing Dracon beam at the target.
- Killing cylinders - small metal cylinder that kills both Yeerk and host when pressed against the back of the host's neck.
- Genetic scanner - small hand-held device that scans target for genetic makeup. Does not harm the target. Probably modified from Andalite technology.
- Zero-space engines - allow a ship to jump from real space to zero-space, taking advantage of the curvature of space to travel great distances much more quickly. Blatantly stolen from Andalites.
- Anti-morphing ray - a machine that forces a creature to revert its DNA pattern from a morph to that of its natural cells. One of these devices was made; however, while it probably worked, the Animorphs tricked Visser Three into thinking it didn't, and subsequentially the project was abandoned, its creators put to death.
- Yeerk torture device - one of presumably many, it consists of three buttons that focus on a box where the target lies. The Yeerks rely on their knowledge of all things neural to force the target to feel extreme pain, extreme happiness, or both at the same time.
- Bug fighters - basic maximum-of-three-person fighters that resemble a black, oval-shaped beetle or other insect, with two eye-like windows and two serrated spears jutting out from its front end (the Dracon cannon). The interior is large enough for three crew members of various species to walk around in, with a weapons station and navigational controls (the latter often handled by a Taxxon). Modified from Andalite tail-fighters, and inspired by the Hork-Bajir homeworld, where the Bug fighters were first built.
- Blade Ships - resemble a black medieval battle-axe, with two broad axe-like wings and a long "handle" with a diamond-shaped bridge on the end. Typically assigned to Vissers.
- Pool Ships - Huge, round bloated black ships with three spider-like legs (engines) and a series of thick tentacles hanging from the bottom (engines).
- Cruiser-class ships - shaped like a V or a boomerang, these ships fly with the two pronged ends forward, which hold Dracon cannon.
- Truck Ships - Shaped almost like large black metal manta rays. Used to syphon large quantities of water or other supplies. Stolen from Andalites.
Yeerk terminology
- Andalite bandit - "Andalite bandits" are the common term by which the Yeerks refer to the Animorphs. This being that they think the Animorphs are an escaped band of Andalite warriors bent on destroying them.
- Anti-Morphing Ray (AMR) - A Yeerk-developed device which can detect morphing energy, and reverse the morphing process.
- Blade ship - Visser Three's personal ship, the Blade ship is the Visser's usual means of transportation. It is a jet black ship with the weapons section in the back and curved like a scythe blade.
- Blue Band Squad - An elite Hork-Bajir unit. These Controllers are highly trained, and are much faster and much stronger than the average shock trooper. They also wear blue bands on their arms, hence their group's name. The squad leader's name is Grath.
- Bug fighter - The standard Yeerk fighter craft. The Bug fighter looks like a jet-black cockroach without legs. The 'head' of the fighter has two long lance-like projections, which house the Dracon beams.
- Controller - A term used to describe a creature under the control of a Yeerk parasite. Willing hosts are known as Collaborators, whereas unwilling hosts are simply known as Controllers.
- Council of Thirteen - A fictional organisation from the science fiction book series Animorphs. The Council of Thirteen is the head of the Yeerk government. This supreme body of leaders is composed of thirteen members, each with their own host body. Hork-Bajir, humans and other races are occupied by the members of the Council. They dress in elaborate robes. One of the Council members is the Emperor, but the leader is known only to the other Council members. Visser One, who occupies
- Dapsen - According to Ax, dapsen is not a very polite word. This word was used to name a Yeerk front organisation, Dapsen Logging Company. This leads the Animorphs to believe that the Yeerks may have a sense of humor after all...
- Dracon beam - A main handheld weapon of the Yeerk. Similar to Laser beam integrate to Guns. Highly dangerous since causing vaporize and disappearance in body parts when get shot.
- Emergency Kandrona Particle Generators - A one-use, small Yeerk pool made for emergencies. These are designed to make it more or less easy for the Yeerks to carry around with them. Usually used by Yeerks on the run.
- Five Classes of Alien - The Yeerks have a grouping system for different alien species. They are arranged into five Classes. Physically unfit species, such as Hawjabrans, Mortrons and Skrit Na are described as Class One aliens. Aliens that can be infested, but suffer from physiological disadvantages, like Taxxons and Gedds, are considered Class Two species. Class Three aliens such as Hork-Bajir are excellent for infestation, but exist in low numbers and do not breed quickly. Andalites are plentiful and would make good hosts, but are very difficult to obtain, and as such are Class Four species. Finally, Class Five aliens are those that are physically fit, can be infested, are extremely adaptable, are numerous, breed quickly and are unable to resist the Yeerks. Humans fall into this category.
- Formula 71
- Gashad - A warrant issued by the Council of Thirteen to killsomeone on sight.
- Gleet BioFilter - The Gleet BioFilter is borrowed technology from the Andalites whose purpose is to eradicate all organic life forms within the limited range of the filter. Gleet BioFilters are typically positioned at key entry points to sensitive areas, e.g. the yeerk pool, in order to ward off spies.
- Happy Meal with Extra Happy - The secret password to enter the Yeerk pool at McDonalds fast food restaurants. Rachel decides the Yeerks do indeed have a sense of humor...
- Hunter robots
- Kandrona - Kandrona is the name of the sun of the Yeerk homeworld. Yeerks must bask in its light every three days in order to obtain essential nutrients--much like the human ability to synthesize Vitamin D2 by solar radiation.
- Operation 9466
- Project Obedience
- The Fugue - 'The fugue' is the death phase during a Yeerk's Kandrona starvation.
- The Sharing - The Sharing is an organization intended to lure humans into capture by playing on their instinctive need to "belong" to a group. The Sharing's exterior activities somewhat resemble those of the boyscouts.
- Veleek - Yeerk for "pet;" name Visser Three gave to the monster in The Andalite's Gift.
- Visser - A Visser is a high rank in the Yeerk hierarchy. It equates more or less to a general or an Andalite prince. There are forty-seven Vissers, and many more sub-Vissers, who are like colonels.
- Yeerk Peace Movement
- Yeerk Pool
Known hosts
See also: Parasite