Morphing 101

[Jullian]

Introduction

Hi. My name is Jullian Sovann. I suppose I should keep that a secret. If this book ever fell into the wrong hands then they'd know my name. But is any of that important anymore? Can my name really hurt me? I don't think it can so now you know my name. I'll even tell you where I was born. Small little hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. Yeerks, do your worst, as if you wouldn't already.

I have never written a text book before. While I didn't spend my school career avoiding them they did manage to find their way into my locker often enough and served unusually long sentences at that. So I hope you'll forgive what may become an unorganized collection of stories and theories on morphing. I'll try to make it informative and maybe a bit of a fun read. But text books are text books and I imagine more than one student will find themselves drooling on their copy before they wake up and panic when they realize that test I'm giving them is in two hours...

Skip to the quick tips section student-morpher. You may have just enough time to cram.

[Jullian]

History

So where does morphing come from? Morphing is an alien technology given to humanity by an Andalite named Elfangor-Sirinal-Shamtul. I never met him personally but, from what Cassie tells me, he was a good person and a brave one who died to give humanity a chance. The Andalites are an alien race that looks a bit like centaurs without mouths, an extra pair of eyes and too many fingers. They are the one of four species out there fighting the yeerks and the species with the most advanced technology. But I'm not your history teacher and I wouldn't want to step on their toes so let me move on to my own area of expertise.

The Andalites developed the morphing technology and created machines called Escafil devices in order to make biological creatures capable of morphing. All Escafil devices that we've seen look like softly shining blue boxes that can just fit in a hand. They may come in other varieties but, chances are, you'll see the blue boxes which is why they are also called Blue Boxes. Imaginative I know.

[Jullian]

The Nuts and Bolts of Morphing

So how does morphing work? We don't know for sure. The technology is beyond our current capabilities but I will tell you what we know about it so far and I'll throw in some theories we have about how it works.

When you touch a morphing cube you may feel a slight tingly sensation. This sensation is some form of energy entering your body. It changes you and makes you capable of storing the DNA of other biological creatures inside your blood. It also allows you to switch this DNA with your own when the technology is activated. Your own DNA is stored in the same way that the DNA of your morphs is stored and so it can be switched back in to allow you to return to your own form. This means that it is possible to identify a morph capable human with a blood test so, if you're under cover, don't leave your blood lying around.

The small pieces of DNA in your blood are encapsulated by morphing energy. This allows you to activate them with thought commands. It also means that you radiate morphing energy at all times once you have acquired the power. If the yeerks ever developed a sensor sensitive enough to detect it we'd be in trouble. As it is we only know of sensors that can pick up morphing when it is taking place since, at those times, you are putting off a lot more morphing energy. And, thankfully, those sensors are not in the yeerks hands. But if you ever run into a species called the Helmacron be cautious. They have been able to manipulate morphing energy in the past and never to our benefit.

When you actual morph you use a thought command to activate the morphing technology. The clearer a command the more control you have. If you simply imagine the creature you wish to morph that is the equivalent of flipping an "on" switch for the technology. However, it is possible to send more detailed commands and to control the morphing process. The clearer your mind the clearer your command. And the more detailed your command is the more control you have.

Your command activates the specific morph you have imagined and the technology literally begins growing a clone of that animal out of your own body. It replaces the DNA in every cell of your body with the DNA of the creature it wishes to create and literally uses your own body's process of cell division (accelerated) to create the creature. Where this process begins can be random at first and probably has more to do with where that particular scrap of DNA was floating when it was activated. As you learn to control the process you will be able to control the order of your morph.

If you are morphing a creature smaller than yourself the Andalites incorporated a mass sink into the technology. Extra mass goes into Z-space, the same non space that interstellar ships use. I'm not going to get into physics I don't understand but if you're wondering where your extra mass goes, that's it.

Your brain is also stored in Z-space. It's the one section of your body that the technology does not change. Instead it is stored in Z-space intact and you maintain a thought connection to the morph clone you have created. This allows you to control the body and to activate your own DNA when you wish to return to your own form.

If you are morphing a creature larger than yourself you may be wondering where the extra mass comes from. Well so am I. If you have an answer I'd love to hear it. I assume the Andalites figured out a way for morphers to "borrow" mass from somewhere else since the law of the universe, no mass can be destroyed or created, still holds true with morphing. I have not noticed that it takes longer to morph a larger animal than a smaller one so I am forced to conclude that whatever "mass borrowing" system the Andalites worked into the technology is as efficient as the "mass sink."

Once you have morphed a creature you are basically a ghost riding in its body. Your mind can interface with the new body via the body's own brain or nervous system. This is one of the many reasons why it is almost impossible to morph something without a nervous system. We have been able to morph starfish and jellyfish in the past but it hasn't turned out very well. And we haven't been able to morph plants at all since they lack nervous systems altogether. It also means that if the animal's brain is compromised you can not morph out so be careful. Full decapitation is fatal and severe brain injuries are as well.

You have approximately two hours before you become stuck in a morph. Morphing energy "suspends" your new body. This is the best way I can describe it. It keeps your body from "settling" into its new form permanently. But it is difficult to maintain that state of suspension and, after approximately two hours, the energy it takes to suspend your morph dissipates and your body settles into that form permanently. We have discovered the exact amount of time you have before becoming stuck is actually dependant on the mass of the morph and varies slightly. However, the amount of mass it would take to show a significant difference in the two hour deadline is so massive that two hours holds true for anything in the range of what we are morphing.

Also, it takes approximately a minute or so for the morphing energy to completely dissipate once the clock has run out. This means you can force through a demorph if the clock is running out but it becomes much much more difficult and your success will depend on if you have enough energy left. Think of it as a dying battery. Best not to get caught in any of these situations and demorph at least a half hour before your limit is up.

This also means that you are radiating more morphing energy when you are in morph than when you are out of it. I will continue to inform you how "hot" you are burning because we don't expect it to be long before the yeerks figure out how to detect the energy. They know the technology is possible and they have resources to devote to the subject. So it will be imperative that you realize how you'll show up on sensors and we hope to find ways to mask our signatures.

When you wish to return to your own form you simply activate your own DNA with the same type of thought command you used to morph in the beginning. It takes approximately three minutes to morph or demorph when you first start out. I have seen people take longer and I've seen naturals who get it quicker. As with any other skill, practice will improve your ability. You can reduce that time and, in extraordinary cases, I have even seen morphers complete morphs almost instantaneously but those were cases of extreme danger and we have not been able to replicate that morph time under normal circumstances.

In order to morph an organism you must have a sample of its DNA. There are many ways to acquire that sample and I'll go into the acquiring process in later sections. For now that should cover the theory of morphing from beginning to end.

[Jullian]

Before You Begin

Before you even begin morphing I would recommend meditation. This is not about your peace of mind though that is an admirable goal. Your mind must be clear and controlled before you morph. Not only will this help you control the morphing process, it is essential for controlling the morph itself.

You should also seek to develop your visualization skills. Visualization is one of the best ways to control the morphing process. The clearer you can imagine your morph the more control you have. However, visualization is not the only way to control a morph. I have met morphers who concentrate on various other senses and control the morph that way. For example, concentrating on how feathers feel or what a certain smell is like for your animal. The most successful morphers can hold all of these qualities in their mind at once and their morphs are much smoother and faster. You will eventually get to the level where you know what it feels like to be a specific creature. This is what you should be aiming for. But when you begin clear visualization is key.

So spend time learning to calm and clear your own mind. Any mediation help book will be adequate to teach you this but in case you do not have access to one I will give some tips for beginning mediators.

Breath. The first step of meditation is to slow down your breathing. This will slow down your heart rate and it is much harder if not impossible to feel anxiety while you are breathing slowly. When you first begin practicing breath in to a count of seven, hold for a count of seven, and then breathe out to a count of seven. When your lungs expand your stomach should move, not your chest.

Posture. You should be in a relaxed position. Ideally you will be sitting with your legs crossed. Your spine should be straight. This is more difficult to achieve than it sounds. For those with bad posture it will be tiring to straighten your back at first and to maintain that posture. For those with good posture it will be difficult to relax it. When we have "good posture" we are actually bending out spine in a very specific way that maximizes our height and pushes our shoulders back to open our chest. In order to sit with a straight spine you must actually curve your stomach in a bowl almost. Your chin should not be up or straight out but should be half way to your chest and your eyes should be at approximately a 45 degree angle to the ground.

Clearing Your Mind. This is very difficult to do at first. It is very hard to not think of anything. Instead of trying to clear your mind let your thought drift through your mind without focusing too heavily on one of them. In time it will become easier and easier to let those thoughts go. If you have a lot of time I would suggest trying to get to this state. However we are preparing you to fight and time is limited so I'll move on and resign myself to just a suggestion. No matter how experienced a morpher you are you can benefit from this skill.

[Jullian]

Acquiring a Morph

Once you have touched an Escafil device your body is capable of acquiring morphs. Acquiring a morph entails coming in contact with its DNA. Since every part of an organism's body possesses its DNA a touch is enough. You can also attempt to come into contact with something that carries the organism's DNA such as hair, skin or blood.

In order to get a sample of an organism's DNA you must come into contact with living cells. This is why touching the animal itself is the best way to ensure a successful acquisition. Since the animal is often unavailable we have developed a system using blood. Blood only remains viable for 42 days after collection but it can be stored for up to 10 years if frozen. For this reason our blood bank is one of the most precious resources in our possession. Periodically, samples of blood are unfrozen and used to replenish faction supplies. However, there is a dedicated team who is constantly working to collect blood samples for later use.

In order to acquire a morph you must simply give the technology another thought command. The morphing technology is designed to be efficient and responds to very simple thought commands. In this case, you must simple picture or think of the animal that you are attempting to acquire and your body will store its DNA. Your visualization of the animal need not be specific. General visualizations will work well enough.

If you are acquiring the animal itself we have found that many animals go into an acquiring trance. This trance can last anywhere from a minute to a couple of minutes during which the animal in question is extremely calm and mostly sedentary. There have been cases where an animal does not go into a trance. We do not know if this is species related or caused by the specific animal but, either way, it is best not to rely on the trance, especially in the case of dangerous animals.

It is also possible to acquire a morph from a recently dead animal. However, the death must be extremely recent. As in, it should probably still be dying. If it hasn't faded completely you may get a good acquisition from it. There has never been a case of partial acquisition to date so you will either get your morph or you will not.

When you acquire a morph many have reported a feeling of a cold shiver passing from the place where they are in contact with the DNA to their spine. It is not always present but it's a good indicator if you have gotten the morph or not. Still, the only way to truly know if you have gotten a good read on your subject is to attempt the morph itself.

[Jullian]

Morphing

So here it is. Your first morph. The truth is morphing is intuitive but I will tell you a few things to watch out for.

To begin morphing you simply think of the creature you want to morph. When you first start out I expect this to be a general visualization. As you go comfortable with morphing and with your particular morphs you will get better at thinking of your morph and your morphs will get smoother and faster. Every animal is an individual just as every human is so what it feels like to be in one type of cat, for instance, is not what it feels like to be in another. You will get to the point where you know what your cat feels like.

But you have just started out so, clear your mind, and picture your morph. Sometimes you will immediately feel a change and sometimes you won’t but the technology has been activated. You will be able to feel your body begin to change. I am not certain if this process is naturally painful or not, but, if it is, you will feel no pain. But it may be disturbing to feel your bones crunch and shift or to feel certain organs just disappear. Be prepared for this. Keep a calm, clear mind and hold onto the image of the animal you wish to become. If you loose focus the morph will stop midway through. Occasionally it is necessary to stop a morph part way through so know that the technology is only activated when you are concentrating on it.

Morphing is not one smooth process. When you first begin it can be very random and parts of your body will change in odd ways and in no definite order. Even experienced morphers can not completely control this process (though we will keep trying). For best results you should try to morph in an open area. And I would suggest sitting down the first few times.

When the morph is near completion you will begin to feel the animal’s brain. If you are morphing a creature capable of thought such as a human or a hork-bajir or such, you may intercept thoughts from your morph. Morphing does not allow you to make a complete copy of a thinking creature, you will not inherit its memories or its thoughts, but its ability to think is inherent in its design. It is for this reason that we try to avoid morphing thinking creatures.

When morphing all creatures you inherit their instincts. Instincts are like software that come with a brain and they are different for every animal obviously. They are often extremely strong and you must be prepared to be in control of those instincts. Smaller prey creatures are often extremely nervous or frightened while large predators can be very dangerous if in the presence of creatures they consider prey (such as your fellow animorphs). In order to avoid unfortunate incidents give some thought to what type of instincts you expect your morph to have and prepare your own mind to control them.

Once you have completed a morph check the time. If you have no way of knowing what time it is please be careful.The creators of the technology, the Andalites, have an innate grasp of the passage of time in the way that some earth animals have an ability to sense the earth’s magnetic field and so have innate sense of direction. But most humans do not have a precise internal clock. So try to always be aware of what time it is when you enter a morph and how much time has passed. I have known many morphers who develop a very good sense of time with experience. But there are many who do not. If you stay in morph too long you get stuck and become what the andalites call, a nothlit.

Once you are morphed learning how to use your morph is simply a matter of practice. Morphing is about doing and no amount of reading will teach you how to fly. But practice will. Often your animal instinctively knows how to do many things that you cannot. Let your new body handle the flying and other processes that, as humans, we have no idea how to do. As you become familiar with your animal you can take more and more control of these processes.

Demorph: In order to return to your own form you must concentrate on an image of yourself. We have determined that, for some reason, personal choice changes to your body will persist through morphing. Things like hair cuts don't change. We don't know why. In the next section I'll go into the healing properties of morphing.

I'll conclude this section by saying practice, practice, practice. Practice is the key to good morphing. But I’ll stop repeating that now.

[Jullian]

The Healing Properties of Morphing

Since the morphing technology is based on DNA it can have a “healing” aspect to it. Morphing technology does not actually heal an injury so much as erase it. As long as your particular ailment is not coded into your DNA or the DNA of your morph then it will not be copied when you morph or demorph.

Morphing has been known to cure paralysis caused after birth, a few diseases and severe injuries. Healing will also go as deep as “healing” or replacing scar tissue. Often, after receiving an injury, our body heals differently. The affected area is almost back to new but it is never completely the same. Morphing eliminates this problem. Those who have broken bones in the past will find that they no longer feel pain at the site of their injury. Scars will also tend to disappear.

And constant morphing seems to limit the usual wear a body accumulates over time. We are starting to believe that morphing may extend “youth.” This does not mean your body does not age, just that it does not accumulate the amount of wear and tear that our bodies would normally pick up across the years. The cumulative effect of this constant renewal may make a person look “younger” than they actually are (probably because of a lack of sun damage to the skin. Between you and me, I’ll take those results).

It is a good thing that morphing does not actually extend the aging process since many of our recruits are biological adolescents. As far as we can tell, morphing does not slow down the body’s natural maturation and morphers still become biological adults around the age of 24. But morphing is still extremely new and we will not know all of its effects for years yet.

The “healing effect” works both ways. If your morphed body is damaged you can return to your own body and, when morphed the next time, the morph will be whole again. It is also possible to acquire undamaged morphs from damaged animals. That is why it is possible to acquire morphs from dying and recently dead organisms.

There are things that morphing can not heal. While morphing can heal cancer it can not change the fact that you are genetically predisposed to get cancer. It is quite possible that you could experience a relapse. It is also impossible for morphing to heal traumatic head injuries such as decapitation and impalement. The brain is the control center for the technology. If it can not give the thought command then you can not morph.

Morphing can not “heal” hunger. In fact, you may come to find that you’re extremely hungry after morphing. That is because it does not replicate the contents of your stomach. If you had eaten recently and the food had already been broken down and absorbed then you’re in the clear. But morphing is actually one of the best cleansers that humans have come in contact with. It clears your stomach, your bladder and anywhere else where your body may have been storing extra mass. If you eat anything in morph it will not transfer over to your human body. At most, it will keep your morph from starving. Demorphing will reset your own “starvation” clock so it is possible to extend the amount of time you can go without food via morphing, maybe indefinitely, but it is not pleasant and I would not suggest it.

There has been no established connection between our own body’s store of energy and morphing but many morphers have reported feeling tired after performing many morphs. Therefore I would advise against attempting multiple morphs on an empty stomach.

There is no resetting for this morph fatigue effect. Your body may experience a brief jolt of energy when you enter a new morph but the fatigue stays with you through a demorph and, over time, it will even begin to affect your morphed bodies. And there is absolutely no reset at all for your mind. Since it does not change it grows as tired as it normally would as fatigue poisons build up.

So, while the healing properties of morphing can be useful and sometimes miraculous, morphing is no substitute for basic care.

[Jullian]

Morph Class: So the way morph class will work is like this. You must write about one of these exercises before you "graduate." Your exercise can be in the usual post by post format and you can play it out with Jullian or with another player (guidelines allowing) or you can write it up completely on your own and just have Jullian there in the background as an NPC. Whichever style works best for you.

If you'd like to complete more than one exercise for more posts or more points or just for the fun of it, feel free. If you have any ideas for other exercises to add or ways to improve these exercises definitely let me know. I'm always looking for input and ways to improve.

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Exercises

Level One All level one exercises are assumed to take place in the presence of the Morph Instructor. If you'd like the Morph Instructor to actually be a part of the thread (instead of just in the background) please let me know.
First Morph Describe the first morph you ever do. Hit all five senses. How it looked, how it felt, how it sounded, any smells you noticed or any tastes you experienced. Include a description of the animal’s instinct and how you handled them (or not). Describe what if feels like to move in that body. Then finish up with a demorph.
Flying for the first time Describe your first experience with flight while in morph. Was it easy or difficult? Did you let the morph lead or did you do it on your own? How does your particular morph fly? The cutting style of small bats, or the soaring style of large raptors (for large raptors set in hangar bay).
First Bug morph Describe morphing an insect for the first time. Again, hit all five senses. Make sure to include what it is like to try to understand human speech while in morph.
Level Two It is expected that you completed all level two exercises before leaving the Academy. The Morph Instructor would have assigned them but they can be completed in your own time unless you want the Morph Instructor to be there.
Endurance Morphing Endurance morphing is morphing again and again in order to extend your ability to do so. Multiple morphs causes Morph Fatigue and it gets harder and harder to morph as time goes on. Describe practicing multiple morphs in a row.
Speed Morphing Morphing takes about three minutes when a morpher first starts out. This time can be reduced. Some have attributed the drop in time to simple practice. Others have said it’s about being in touch with the animal you are morphing (which may naturally happen with practice). Describe practicing getting your morph time down. Morphing should still take about a minute at the best speed and after years (literally years, we have characters that are three years old) of practice.
Isolations There have been a few morphers who have been able to isolate parts of their body for morphing. Describe attempting to only morph one part of your body at a time.
Level Three It is assumed that you completed all level three exercises before leaving the Academy. They would have taken place in your final three weeks of class and would have been done under the supervision of the Morph Instructor and the Combat Instructor.
Morph While Falling Describe being forced to morph into an animal capable of flight while falling from a plane or a bug fighter.
Morph While Running Describe morphing while attempting to run. This exercise may be set during an obstacle course run while under live fire or it may be one your own. For an extra challenge try morphing a bird and getting into the air.
Morph Healing Describe being forced through morphs and demorphs to heal injuries inflicted by your teachers.
Morphing in the Ocean Describe being taken out onto the ocean and having to morph into a swim capable creature. For extra points, start off as a flying morph.
Level Four All level four exercises are advanced exercises. They can either be written while your character cycles through the Academy or can be an account of doing the exercise at a faction. If the exercises are done at a faction it is assumed that you're submitting a report of them to add to the store of knowledge about morphing and should be written as if it has taken place in the past.
Morph Control Describe trying to completely control a morph including, its timing, and its order.
Emission Control Morphing Describe controlling the timing of a morph to slow it down. The longer you can stretch out the morph the less morphing energy you are emitting. You can not take longer than two hours to morph for obvious reasons.
Morphing Clothing Describe incorporating more than skin tight clothing into your human morph/demorph.
Level Five Level Five exercises follow the same rules as Level four.
Prey Animals Describe morphing a prey animal with especially strong flight instincts. Describe how you over came the problem.
Large Predators Describe morphing a large predator with especially strong hunting instincts. Describe how you over came the problem.
Blood Lust (Shark specific) Describe attempting to control your shark morph when blood has been spilt nearby.
Am I dead yet? (Cockroach specific) Describe a near death experience with a cockroach morph that would have resulted in the death of any other morph.
Flight tag (Flying Morphs) Describe playing flight tag with other flying morphs. Flying morphs are outfitted with tear away flags and the object of the game is to deflag your opponent without getting deflagged yourself. Two or more people.
Riding the winds (Raptor Specific) Describe learning how to ride headwinds, tailwinds, thermals, etc with a raptor morph.
The Forgotten Sense: Smell Describe morphing an animal with a particularly strong sense of smell and being put through the smell obstacle course. Flags that have been dipped in rosemary oil have been hidden around the ship. Find them. Ten flags per person.
The Art of the Sword (Hork Bajir Specific) Describe developing a martial art style for Hork Bajir that makes the best use of their strength, speed and blades.
Save a Horse, Ride an Animorph (Ungulate Specific) Describe learning how to have human and human-like creatures ride you as a horse, deer, antelope, etc.
Law of the Jungle Describe using a morph capable of climbing to navigate a jungle gym, forest, building frame, etc.

[Jullian]

Completed Classes

First Morph
Dustin
Richard

Flying for the first time

First Bug morph
Dustin

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Endurance Morphing
Alain and Richard

Speed Morphing
Richard

Isolations

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Morph While Falling

Morph While Running
Dustin

Morph Healing

Morphing in the Ocean

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Morph Control

Emission Control Morphing

Morphing Clothing

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Prey Animals

Large Predators

Blood Lust (Shark specific)

Am I dead yet? (Cockroach specific)

Flight tag (Flying Morphs)
Richard and Adrian

Riding the winds (Raptor Specific)

The Forgotten Sense: Smell
Richard

The Art of the Sword (Hork Bajir Specific)

Save a Horse, Ride an Animorph (Ungulate Specific)

Law of the Jungle