"Not something I really have a huge advantage at... I can hold my breath for like three minutes if I really need to but I haven't tried that while actively moving around..."

Nod.

"If I can get inside with this taxxon, we could draw Visser One to the surface. We also might be found out, which puts the entire operation at risk. If we send the taxxon back alone, that gives us less direct control over the progress of the mission, but it minimizes the risk of my lack of intel leading to discovery. As the expert on what this taxxon's priorities are, I defer to you."

" - I think the second." He's fairly confident in his power's ability to rework someone's priorities very, very thoroughly.

He nods, and explains the plan to the taxxon.

The taxxon speaks.

"We can release it here, and it will swim back to the base. As for our dolphin allies, we might need to mount a rescue mission. There were sharks approaching, and according to the taxxon, they might be controllers. I hadn't know such a thing was possible, but I suppose that is the point of an experiment. They've succeeded in infesting the sharks; long-term viability is unclear. I think it might be safer to trust them for now, so as not to play our hand before Visser One's curiosity brings her to the surface."

The taxxon, happy to be of service, slithers out of the submarine.

"So - figure the sharks won't attack the dolphins right away?" Probably he's influencing them, too, though it's a bit harder when he doesn't have a target.

"Yes, I imagine they won't be. If nothing else, the taxxon will provide a timely distraction. Visser One will be tricky; she has a reputation as a cunning and ruthless general, which I suspect are well-earned. Your power may not work well enough on her at any amount of remove. If she decides that there is a risk here, she could target our ship directly. In that case, we'll need to act fast. Do you have a similar lung capacity to the average human?"

"Lung capacity of a fit human who swims for fun, but not like of a professional diver or Olympic swimmer."

Nod.

"We won't rely heavily on that, then. We'll submerge and try moving the ship slowly. Sit tight."

And so they wait.

Not particularly fun.

They move the sub slightly, very slowly, so that he can move the hologram with them. If Visser One is particularly observant, she might notice something amiss, but he's relying on her being more focused on the spot the taxxon came from, if she noticed its movement at all.

He doesn't know much about how she runs her hierarchy, but if it's anything like Visser Three, he doubts that any of her underlings usefully report to her.

So they wait, and they wait- and then there's no need to wait. There is a small ship leaving the base and rocketing up towards the surface. They're out of reach, but not by much.

"Their ship will detect us. Should I move us closer first?"

"I think so, yeah."

They move in. As the yeerk ship breaches the surface, they close in. Nereus might be able to affect some of the Controllers inside.

Deaton focuses on maintaining the hologram. The water has been disturbed, so he works on a realistic explanation.

He tries to impact the Controllers - it's a bit hard with too many layers of indirection, but he should at least be helping the impression of 'whatever out there is friendly' and priming them for his full power once they're in proper sight.

The ship, upon finding nothing to target, begins to submerge once more.

"Attempt to follow it?"

"Yeah... How unsafe would revealing ourselves be?"

"We won't be able to outrun them. If you're willing, now might be the time to test your power's ability to subvert Yeerk control," he says casually.

"Yeah. Or at least get the Yeerks themselves."

"I haven't been completely honest with you or the others. I'm an android. Our time now is short, but I have the ability to sustain a Yeerk in my body indefinitely. If you need to test yourself against infestation, I can transfer her to you."

"That might be - really risky but for the best, yeah."

Nod. As far as Nereus can see, nothing changes, but within moments, Deaton reaches a hand up to his hand. It passes through his head, only slightly disrupting the hologram. He still cannot see what might lie underneath it. Deaton retreives his hand, now containing a large greenish-grey slug.

"I trust her as far as I can throw her. Your power is what makes me think this is worth the risk."

"Yeah, let's try it."