Chapter 3

That night I dreamed. I dreamed of Tobias flying. It was like I was there inside of him as he flew. I knew he felt bad. I began to feel qualms about yelling at him. Then, suddenly, there was Visser 3.

“There!” he screamed. “I’ve seen that bird before. That’s the bird who did this to me.” He held up a scratched and bleeding Andalite arm. Tobias tried to fly away but a searing pain hit his wing. He crashed to the ground.

I woke up sweating. I reached for the phone and quickly dialed.

“Cassie?” I asked.

“Yeah, me too.” We didn’t need anymore words except, “I’ll call everybody and be right over.”

“Are you sure?” Jake asked. We were at the barn and I think everyone was a little sleepy.

“Yes we’re sure.” Cassie answered.

“If Tobias is in trouble with Visser 3 than we don’t have a lot of time.” Rachel said. I could tell she was scared. It really killed me.

I liked Rachel, so why did I find myself being so jealous?

“Rachel’s right” I said. “Visser 3 has seen Tobias, he probably knows it’s been the same hawk that attacks him.”

“So where is he?” Marco asked. Cassie and I exchanged glances.

“We know he’s in the forest near Prows Point. We are hoping that once we get there we could pinpoint him.” I said.

“It’s a long shot,” Cassie added, “but it may be our only shot.” No one seemed happy about that. Jake sighed.

“Well, let’s go then.”

A cold wind blew though the forest, making the limbs of the trees clack together like black bones. I shuddered. Where was Tobias?

Cassie and I called out to him constantly, but to no avail. We figured he must be unconscious, which didn’t ease or fears at all.

I doubled over in pain. Cassie looked at me worriedly, I guess since we usually felt the same things and this time it was only me. I knew why but I simply let her think it was only because my power was stronger. She didn’t need to know more.

“Is it Tobias?” Rachel asked, the fear thick in her voice. I nodded weakly.

In my mind flashed Visser 3. A fish tank was near him. I knew what he planned to do. Cassie saw it too. We knew where he was. Before he could react Visser 3 submerged Tobias in the tank and slammed the lid shut. The water was filled to the top and birds are not meant to swim. It was as if I had 2 lungs. I could breathe but at the same time I couldn’t. I had an idea.

“Cassie, go show them where he is.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I have a plan--now just go!”

So they left. I slumped against a tree. I took a deep breath. However--and I’m not sure how I did this--most of the air went to Tobias’s lungs. With each shallow breath I took he took a larger one. Again and again. Blackness started to creep into my mind. I thought how nice it would be to sleep.

I can’t breathe! I was drowning! I began to panic and tried to gulp some air. Instead of air I only choked on water. I began to thrash under invisible water. Come down, I told myself. I wasn’t sure whose lungs I used anymore. I changed the breathing rate so that I got a little more air.

At one point Tobias asked through thought-speech how I was doing this. I didn’t dare answer for fear it would take up too much energy. I could see through his eyes that we were not at a yeerk pool. I’m not sure where we--he--was but it looked almost like a laboratory. Then, to our relief, I could see Jake as a tiger jumping on Visser 3 and Rachel knocking over the tank. I let Tobias breathe with his own lungs and came to.

I was drenched, as if I had been underwater, and dizzy. I collapsed. If I died now I didn’t care; I only wanted to sleep.