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Authors: K. A. Applegate
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was a Hork-Bajir. This was wrong. Wrong! It had to be stopped.
I stopped.
A few seconds earlier I was thinking that no sane hawk would go after a full-grown raccoon. Now I was going after a Hork-Bajir. Hork-Bajir compare to raccoons like a nuclear bomb compares to a bow and arrow.
It would have to be the eyes. The eyes were the only weak spot.
“Tseeeeer!”
I rocketed toward the Hork-Bajir. The human slipped and fell again.
Talons forward. The Hork-Bajir was totally focused on his prey. I hit him fast and hard and sailed past.
“Gurrawwwrr!” the Hork-Bajir yelled. He clutched at his eyes.
The human was up and running again.
“Gurr gafrasch!
To me! Getting away!
Hilch nahurrn!”
the Hork-Bajir yelled, in the strange combination of human and alien speech that they use when working with humans.
He was calling for help. I used my momentum to soar up over the tops of the trees. He had plenty of help available. Another Hork-Bajir about a thousandyards off. And two of the bogus Park Rangers were nearer.
It was all coming back to me. The fake Park Rangers. The Hork-Bajir enforcers. This was the lake. A Yeerk supply ship must be on its way in.
Yeerks. Andalites.
My friends, the Animorphs.
Yes, my
friends.
I remembered now. But this human was not one of them. This human prey was older. A stranger.
The freed hawk was watching me. I could almost feel her drawing me toward her. It was like a magnet. She was my kind. She was like me.
But the Park Rangers were in hot pursuit of the human now. The human was nothing like me. Poor, clumsy ground runner that he was. He was just prey.
And yet, for some reason, I couldn’t let him be prey.
I
couldn’t.
Me.
Tobias.
CHAPTER 17
I landed on the perch outside Rachel’s window. It was night. But she wasn’t asleep. She was reading a book in bed, propped up by several pillows.
I fluttered a wing against the glass.
She started. The book went flying. She jumped up and ran to the window, throwing it open.
“Tobias?”
I said wryly.
She started to hug me, to put her arms around me. But then she realized that wasn’t possible. Birds aren’t exactly made for hugging.
“Are you okay? We’ve all been terrified. Cassie said maybe you were killed or something. There are all kinds of things that can happen. Jake is so depressed.”
I said. I flapped over to her dresser.
Now that she was sure I was safe, she started getting mad. It made me smile inwardly. That was Rachel for you.
“Tobias, what is the deal with you? Why would you just disappear and leave us all worrying for days?”
I said. I told her about my first kill. About how much it horrified me.
I don’t know how I expected her to react. She tried to look sympathetic, but I could see it bothered her.
I admitted.
“What?” She went to check her door and make sure neither of her sisters was nearby. I could hear that the house was quiet. “What happened?”
I told her about going to the lake. I told her about the guy being chased by Hork-Bajir.
“You talked to him?”
Rachel looked stunned. “But now he knows about you! And he knows about the Hork-Bajir.”
I stopped.
A few seconds earlier I was thinking that no sane hawk would go after a full-grown raccoon. Now I was going after a Hork-Bajir. Hork-Bajir compare to raccoons like a nuclear bomb compares to a bow and arrow.
It would have to be the eyes. The eyes were the only weak spot.
“Tseeeeer!”
I rocketed toward the Hork-Bajir. The human slipped and fell again.
Talons forward. The Hork-Bajir was totally focused on his prey. I hit him fast and hard and sailed past.
“Gurrawwwrr!” the Hork-Bajir yelled. He clutched at his eyes.
The human was up and running again.
“Gurr gafrasch!
To me! Getting away!
Hilch nahurrn!”
the Hork-Bajir yelled, in the strange combination of human and alien speech that they use when working with humans.
He was calling for help. I used my momentum to soar up over the tops of the trees. He had plenty of help available. Another Hork-Bajir about a thousandyards off. And two of the bogus Park Rangers were nearer.
It was all coming back to me. The fake Park Rangers. The Hork-Bajir enforcers. This was the lake. A Yeerk supply ship must be on its way in.
Yeerks. Andalites.
My friends, the Animorphs.
Yes, my
friends.
I remembered now. But this human was not one of them. This human prey was older. A stranger.
The freed hawk was watching me. I could almost feel her drawing me toward her. It was like a magnet. She was my kind. She was like me.
But the Park Rangers were in hot pursuit of the human now. The human was nothing like me. Poor, clumsy ground runner that he was. He was just prey.
And yet, for some reason, I couldn’t let him be prey.
I
couldn’t.
Me.
Tobias.
CHAPTER 17
I landed on the perch outside Rachel’s window. It was night. But she wasn’t asleep. She was reading a book in bed, propped up by several pillows.
I fluttered a wing against the glass.
She started. The book went flying. She jumped up and ran to the window, throwing it open.
“Tobias?”
She started to hug me, to put her arms around me. But then she realized that wasn’t possible. Birds aren’t exactly made for hugging.
“Are you okay? We’ve all been terrified. Cassie said maybe you were killed or something. There are all kinds of things that can happen. Jake is so depressed.”
Now that she was sure I was safe, she started getting mad. It made me smile inwardly. That was Rachel for you.
“Tobias, what is the deal with you? Why would you just disappear and leave us all worrying for days?”
I don’t know how I expected her to react. She tried to look sympathetic, but I could see it bothered her.
I admitted.
“What?” She went to check her door and make sure neither of her sisters was nearby. I could hear that the house was quiet. “What happened?”
I told her about going to the lake. I told her about the guy being chased by Hork-Bajir.
“You talked to him?”
Rachel looked stunned. “But now he knows about you! And he knows about the Hork-Bajir.”
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