[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
tip of the deadly sucking needle.
big fat needle.
WHOOOOSSSHHH!
A massive gust of wind sent me swirling, then
And then the monster insect hit the bee.
falling toward the ground.
Hard. Wrapped its horrible legs around it, captur-
Falling, but not dead.
ing the smaller insect in a spiny, iron maiden-like
I tried to move my wings, get control. But
prison.
they were still pinned against my body by the
Like one gigantic mutant insect they flew. The
grip of the demon on my back.
bee struggled but to no effect,
Thump!
And then the big bandit stabbed the bee with
I hit the ground. Stunned but alive.
its needle-nose. Had to be sucking the life from
Rachel cried.
the bee, because when the big insect released
the carcass it was withered and dry.
still got me!>
A terrible close call. But the killer insect had
flown out of si ght . . .
him right in half. Sorry I let you fall.>
74 75
Cake. A piece of cake.
here, will you?>
A bald eagle dive-bombing bugs in the back-
into the greenhouse.>
yard? Not too odd.
Too late. Had to take the chance. I slipped in
With massive eagle claws, Rachel grabbed
behind another honeybee. Frighteningly close to
me and what was left of the killer. We flew into
Gafinilan, who was peering intently at one of his
the dense trees back by the hive where, one at a
plant labels, holding it close to his two main
time, we demorphed and remorphed. Got ready eyes.
to try this insane thing again. Suddenly, he swiveled his eye stalks toward
This time, Rachel was on the lookout for winged
us. Noted our appearance. And swiveled them
hijackers.
back to his own business.
After about ten minutes, another few bees
house.>
headed off toward Gafinilan's greenhouse. I fol-
I'd noted on my first visit that Gafinilan
lowed.
hadn't closed the back door of the house, the one
I called out.
that connected the kitchen to the greenhouse.
Let me tell you I more than realized I could Had counted on his not doing so again.
Luck was with me.
definitely be fried in the force field, but it was a
So far, anyway.
spectacular thing to actually see. A color I'd never
I zipped through the open door.
seen as a human. Unbelievable. Indescribable.
Flew through every room in the house. The
Something I later learned was called "bee-
immaculately kept living room. Unused dining
purple." It's the color between yellow and ultra-
room. Pristine kitchen.
violet on the spectrum. Too intense for the
And I used the honeybee's eyes and antennae
human eye to see.
to try to pick up more information.
Too bad. Because it was intense. And running
I smelled the flowers, plants, and potting soil
right through it, easily marked, was a curving
from the greenhouse. The chocolate and raisins
tunnel. Actually quite wide for a bee. And the
of the cookies Gafinilan had stacked inside sev-
tunnel led ultimately to a small hole in a glass
panel of the greenhouse's back wall.
77
76
eral glass Mason jars. A strong, disinfectant
smell in the bathroom. Mr. Clean or Top Job or
Comet.
Throughout the house, in every room, Gafini-
lan's distinctive, not unpleasant odor.
But there was one thing I distinctly did not
see or smell or sense in any way.
I said.
what hasn't been here for a long time. Mertil.>
I don't get it. Where is Mertil?" Jake said.
But only after he stopped telling me he was get-
ting really ticked at me and this whole Gafinilan
thing. After he stopped glaring at Rachel. After
he admitted the information about the missing
Andalite was valuable. We were all in Cassie's
barn. And things were getting consistently more
confusing. "Did he ever exist? Was the guy on the
video a fake?"
Iscar-Elmand at the Andalite Academy. And that
a fighter pilot by the same name won much honor
afterward.> Ax paused thoughtfully.
did not know he was morph incapable. I was un-
79
78
"Okay," Jake said. "I still don't understand
der the impression the academy did not admit
what this disease has to do with us."
vecols.>
"And I don't understand," Rachel began,
"Yeah," I snapped, "you hate when your hero
"why, if Gafinilan has the disease, he can't cure
turns out to be a cripple. That's pretty crappy."
himself by morphing. Oh. Wait. Yes I do. His own
"Back to the point," Jake said tightly. "Which
DNA still has the disease. It's like he's trapped."
is, what do we do about Gafinilan?"
Ax inclined his head.
Rachel sprawled on a stack of hay bales. "He
is to acquire, then morph, another Andalite. One
doesn't want to hurt us. Not yet, anyway. But he
without the defective gene that predisposes
doesn't want to help us, either. He says he wants
toward the disease. In other words, the victim of
us to leave him alone, but then he asks to meet
Soola's Disease must abandon his imperfect
Jake. Doesn't make sense."
body. He must become a nothlit>
Tobias looked at Ax with his intensely fierce
wants . . .>
hawk's eyes.
Ax said excit-
edly.
a nothlit in such a situation or for such a purpose
I shook my head. "See what?"
is considered an act of cowardice. Morally wrong.
Ax ex-
Despicable.>
plained.
"If Gafinilan is sick, why haven't we seen
ner somewhat like humans take tea or coffee
signs of his being in pain? And if acquiring an-
each morning.>
other Andalite is what Gafinilan intends," Cassie
"Okay, but. . ."
mused, "why wouldn't he just have acquired
Ax?"
great quantities, it eases the pain of Soola's Dis-
Ax had an answer for that, too.
ease. This is a genetically programmed disease.
an adult with an impressive warrior's physique.
It causes increasing pain in the joints as well as
He would never choose to adopt the body of a
the muscles, extreme at the end. In some, it
mere youth. He would waste years waiting for the
causes progressive blindness. It strikes in the
new young body to grow to its maximum poten-
prime of life and is always fatal.>
81
80
ter. I'm thinking he probably made that tape of
tial. Besides, ! would never give my permission
his buddy himself. Put it out there to lure any other
for such an act. As for Gafinilan's exhibiting no
Andalites who might just be hanging around
signs of pain In public, that Is only seemly. A
planet Earth. Then when Mertil did his part,
warrior is trained not to show signs of physical [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl wyciskamy.pev.pl
tip of the deadly sucking needle.
big fat needle.
WHOOOOSSSHHH!
A massive gust of wind sent me swirling, then
And then the monster insect hit the bee.
falling toward the ground.
Hard. Wrapped its horrible legs around it, captur-
Falling, but not dead.
ing the smaller insect in a spiny, iron maiden-like
I tried to move my wings, get control. But
prison.
they were still pinned against my body by the
Like one gigantic mutant insect they flew. The
grip of the demon on my back.
bee struggled but to no effect,
Thump!
And then the big bandit stabbed the bee with
I hit the ground. Stunned but alive.
its needle-nose. Had to be sucking the life from
Rachel cried.
the bee, because when the big insect released
the carcass it was withered and dry.
still got me!>
A terrible close call. But the killer insect had
flown out of si ght . . .
him right in half. Sorry I let you fall.>
74 75
Cake. A piece of cake.
here, will you?>
A bald eagle dive-bombing bugs in the back-
into the greenhouse.>
yard? Not too odd.
Too late. Had to take the chance. I slipped in
With massive eagle claws, Rachel grabbed
behind another honeybee. Frighteningly close to
me and what was left of the killer. We flew into
Gafinilan, who was peering intently at one of his
the dense trees back by the hive where, one at a
plant labels, holding it close to his two main
time, we demorphed and remorphed. Got ready eyes.
to try this insane thing again. Suddenly, he swiveled his eye stalks toward
This time, Rachel was on the lookout for winged
us. Noted our appearance. And swiveled them
hijackers.
back to his own business.
After about ten minutes, another few bees
house.>
headed off toward Gafinilan's greenhouse. I fol-
I'd noted on my first visit that Gafinilan
lowed.
hadn't closed the back door of the house, the one
I called out.
that connected the kitchen to the greenhouse.
Let me tell you I more than realized I could Had counted on his not doing so again.
Luck was with me.
definitely be fried in the force field, but it was a
So far, anyway.
spectacular thing to actually see. A color I'd never
I zipped through the open door.
seen as a human. Unbelievable. Indescribable.
Flew through every room in the house. The
Something I later learned was called "bee-
immaculately kept living room. Unused dining
purple." It's the color between yellow and ultra-
room. Pristine kitchen.
violet on the spectrum. Too intense for the
And I used the honeybee's eyes and antennae
human eye to see.
to try to pick up more information.
Too bad. Because it was intense. And running
I smelled the flowers, plants, and potting soil
right through it, easily marked, was a curving
from the greenhouse. The chocolate and raisins
tunnel. Actually quite wide for a bee. And the
of the cookies Gafinilan had stacked inside sev-
tunnel led ultimately to a small hole in a glass
panel of the greenhouse's back wall.
77
76
eral glass Mason jars. A strong, disinfectant
smell in the bathroom. Mr. Clean or Top Job or
Comet.
Throughout the house, in every room, Gafini-
lan's distinctive, not unpleasant odor.
But there was one thing I distinctly did not
see or smell or sense in any way.
I said.
what hasn't been here for a long time. Mertil.>
I don't get it. Where is Mertil?" Jake said.
But only after he stopped telling me he was get-
ting really ticked at me and this whole Gafinilan
thing. After he stopped glaring at Rachel. After
he admitted the information about the missing
Andalite was valuable. We were all in Cassie's
barn. And things were getting consistently more
confusing. "Did he ever exist? Was the guy on the
video a fake?"
Iscar-Elmand at the Andalite Academy. And that
a fighter pilot by the same name won much honor
afterward.> Ax paused thoughtfully.
did not know he was morph incapable. I was un-
79
78
"Okay," Jake said. "I still don't understand
der the impression the academy did not admit
what this disease has to do with us."
vecols.>
"And I don't understand," Rachel began,
"Yeah," I snapped, "you hate when your hero
"why, if Gafinilan has the disease, he can't cure
turns out to be a cripple. That's pretty crappy."
himself by morphing. Oh. Wait. Yes I do. His own
"Back to the point," Jake said tightly. "Which
DNA still has the disease. It's like he's trapped."
is, what do we do about Gafinilan?"
Ax inclined his head.
Rachel sprawled on a stack of hay bales. "He
is to acquire, then morph, another Andalite. One
doesn't want to hurt us. Not yet, anyway. But he
without the defective gene that predisposes
doesn't want to help us, either. He says he wants
toward the disease. In other words, the victim of
us to leave him alone, but then he asks to meet
Soola's Disease must abandon his imperfect
Jake. Doesn't make sense."
body. He must become a nothlit>
Tobias looked at Ax with his intensely fierce
wants . . .>
hawk's eyes.
Ax said excit-
edly.
a nothlit in such a situation or for such a purpose
I shook my head. "See what?"
is considered an act of cowardice. Morally wrong.
Ax ex-
Despicable.>
plained.
"If Gafinilan is sick, why haven't we seen
ner somewhat like humans take tea or coffee
signs of his being in pain? And if acquiring an-
each morning.>
other Andalite is what Gafinilan intends," Cassie
"Okay, but. . ."
mused, "why wouldn't he just have acquired
Ax?"
great quantities, it eases the pain of Soola's Dis-
Ax had an answer for that, too.
ease. This is a genetically programmed disease.
an adult with an impressive warrior's physique.
It causes increasing pain in the joints as well as
He would never choose to adopt the body of a
the muscles, extreme at the end. In some, it
mere youth. He would waste years waiting for the
causes progressive blindness. It strikes in the
new young body to grow to its maximum poten-
prime of life and is always fatal.>
81
80
ter. I'm thinking he probably made that tape of
tial. Besides, ! would never give my permission
his buddy himself. Put it out there to lure any other
for such an act. As for Gafinilan's exhibiting no
Andalites who might just be hanging around
signs of pain In public, that Is only seemly. A
planet Earth. Then when Mertil did his part,
warrior is trained not to show signs of physical [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]