CHAPTER 29

Susan

The next afternoon, the eight of us met back at the barn. I arrived later than the others. I had morphed to Cooper's hawk at my cabin in the woods and practiced my flying skills on the way over. It was getting much easier than it had been at first. I was nowhere near as graceful as the other Animorphs were in flight, but I was getting the hang of it. I did not crash a single time on the way over, though I had some close calls and had been forced to perform sharp turns to prevent from smashing into trees. However, the fact that I'd made it all this way without crashing was a first for me. It proved that I was getting better at this. I still wasn't very good, but at least I wasn't dangerous to anything in the air near me anymore, and I was flying in more or less the way a bird of prey should be flying.

I landed outside the barn, demorphed, and walked in. All of the Animorphs and Erek were sitting around, talking.

I sat down next to Marco on a bale of hay. He smiled at me, and I smiled back, my eyes flaring bright green. I hadn't been this happy in a long time. Not since before my mother had died.

Several minutes later, Txepiva arrived. He must have changed form outside, because he entered the barn in his human form.

"So, Txepiva, how did it go?" Jake asked. Jake reminds me of my father. They both have the unmistakable aura of command about them, as if they were born to be leaders. My father's leadership talent, however, was not as focused toward any one thing as Jake's was. I knew Jake had been forced to make hard decisions during the war against the Yeerks, and I couldn't blame him for being stressed at times by the responsibilities of being the leader of the Animorphs.

Txepiva smiled, and his eyes flashed green. "It went better than I had dared to hope it would. The other Hunters, all of the ones I could contact in one night, agreed as one that we cannot leave. We will stand with our creators and our new allies, and we will fight the Yeerks until this menace has been destroyed once and for all."

Rachel smiled. "I like the way your people think, Txepiva."

Txepiva nodded to her and smiled. "You would make a good Hunter, Rachel. You have a warrior's heart and a hunter's mind. These are admirable qualities."

Rachel grinned. Marco rolled his eyes dramatically, but she ignored him.

"So, in short, the Chee are all with us?" Jake asked.

Erek nodded. "And, actually, we may be able to hide the Hunters better here than if they left. You should know, Jake, that if we Chee hide something, it almost always stays hidden."

He is right, Ax said. This may be the alternative we need. If the Chee can conceal the Hunters, they will not have to leave and can continue helping us in the fight.

"Right," Cassie said. "We need to do this. This is our best chance for the Hunters to have a future."

Txepiva and I considered the others' words. I knew that these Animorphs had our best interests in mind, but it was we Hunters who would have to make the decision.

I looked at Txepiva and spoke quietly to him. "What should we do?"

"We cannot leave," he replied, his eyes shifting into yellow. "Our people deserve to stay and fight, and everyone I spoke with agreed on that."

"Yes," I agreed softly.

Txepiva and I turned towards the others.

"We will stay," Txepiva announced, his eyes shifting into green.

"And we will fight with you to defeat the Yeerks," I finished.

Marco smiled at me, and I returned it. To tell the truth, Marco was one of the reasons why I had decided to stay. There were other reasons, of course, but he was one of the biggest reasons.

"Look," Jake said, "this plan should work. But we need a place where the Hunters can stay and not be spotted by the Yeerks."

What about the valley? Tobias suggested.

I was confused. What valley was he talking about? My eyes turned teal and, looking over at Txepiva, I saw that his had turned teal as well. This meant that he was just as confused as I was.

The Animorphs, however, did not seem nearly as confused. Marco and Rachel seemed confused for a few seconds, but then realization clearly hit them.

"You mean the Hork-Bajir valley?" Rachel asked.

Yeah, Tobias said. It's perfect. It's high up in the mountains, a long way from the Yeerk pool and the city, and we know it works because we already have the Hork-Bajir hidden there. It would be perfect for the Hunters.

I believe that Tobias is correct, Prince Jake, Ax said.

"Excuse me, but I am confused," I said. "What is the Hork-Bajir valley?"

"The Hork-Bajir valley," Marco explained, "is a safe, secluded valley up in the mountains. We know about it because there is a colony of free Hork-Bajir hiding there. We brought them to that valley ourselves, and so far they've been completely undetected there. We think it would be a good place for the Hunters to live."

Yeah, Tobias agreed. You could still hunt in the surrounding forest, but you could return to the valley to use it as a place to rest and build homes for yourselves.

I looked over at Txepiva. Our eyes both shifted into green. This valley sounded like a place that would be perfect for the Hunters to make a home for ourselves.

"You'd be sharing it with the free Hork-Bajir, of course," Rachel said, "but…" She shrugged. "That sounds like a small price to pay for a safe sanctuary."

I nodded. "This place sounds excellent. We could easily make a home in this valley, regardless of what "neighbors" we have."

Txepiva grinned. "I can speak with the other Hunters to inform them of this. We can then guide them to this place."

I'll help, Tobias offered. I can find the place easier than anyone else can.

Txepiva looked up at Tobias and nodded. "Very well, my friends. Today, we will lead the Hunters to our new home."