A/N~This is my first Animorphs fic, please R&R! I created the character Tabetha because there wasn't anyone in the animoprhs that fit the idea I had for it. I've marked it as PG-13 but if you think it should be R please let me know; I don't want anyone reading this who shouldn't be.
Especially tell me what you think of Marco, I think I captured him as a character really well.
Sorry about the whole problem with the thought-speech, it only does it when I upload it it looks fine here. Please read my story anyways!!!!:)
We were in yet another of many battles. And we were losing. Badly.
I felt a stab at my stomach. A hork-bajir had sliced my gorilla body open. I barely registered the pain.
~Okay, everybody, pull back! Jake yelled. ~Get out!
I stumbled toward the door, feeling like I was about to black out. Dimly I realized that my gorilla body was dying. Again.
~Somebody get Marco! Cassie cried.
Rachel snatched me with her grizzly paws and we ran out the door. I blacked out.
"Marco! Marco! Demorph!"
Slowly I felt the changes begin. My coarse gorilla hair shank into my arms and I stood, fully human, still shaky.
"Well, that was truly a marvelous Animorphs Moment," I said lightly. "I love it when my guts are outside my body."
There was a grim silence. No one looked at me. I scanned around.
"Where's Tabetha?" I demanded.
No one answered. Suddenly, I knew.
"Oh, man," I said, sinking to the ground. "Oh, man, oh, man, oh man."
"She's not dead," Rachel said gruffly.
"Yeah? You think that's any great comfort, Xena? If she's not now she will be in about five seconds!"
"She's the only person I can think of other than me who would still be alive at this point," Rachel snapped. "You think she's stupid? Weak?"
"Of course not," I retorted. "But even you're not stupid enough to think she can take on Visser Three single-handedly!"
~So, one of the Andalite Bandits has decided to stay and play with us, we heard a thought-speak voice sneer. ~Let's see how much pain it takes to force him to demorph.
It took approximately three seconds for these words to sink in. When it did, I felt the changes of gorilla start in me. I didn't tell them to, they just did. Slowly I changed back into my normal self. Tobias took off, headed back towards the facility.
"Tobias!" Jake called. "You can't go in there alone!"
~I'm not gonna leave her in there! he yelled back. ~You don't know what kind of torture they do-I wouldn't leave my uncle in there, much less Tabetha!
Rachel began morphing too. "Stop!" Jake said. "We can't just barge right in there, we'll get killed!"
"The Chee," I said suddenly.
"They're non-violent," Cassie said.
"So? Non-violence doesn't mean they can't go in there, grab Tabetha, and bring her out."
Jake thought for about four seconds. "Okay," he said finally. "Ax, Tobias and Marco, go get Erek. Cassie and Rachel, come inside with me as flies so we can see what's going on." Rachel reversed her morph, and Tobias turned around in mid-air. He was already headed towards Erek's.
"I'm going in," I said instantly. Jake shook his head.
"We need you to hurry and get to Erek's."
"Tobias is already on the way. You don't need that many people to go to an android's house."
Jake sighed. "Fine. But don't do anything stupid, alright?"
The insult prickled my neck. "When have I ever done anything stupid when it was close to me? As I recall that was you, Jake."
~Marco, that was uncalled for, Ax snapped, already morphing.
Jake looked at the dirt. I didn't care. I just focused on the fly morph as Jake, Cassie, and Rachel did the same. Normally Cassie is the fastest morpher. This time I beat her, and was zooming towards the facility.
We crawled through a crack in the door. It was easy to find the place, all we had to do was smell for blood.
~You know, does it bother anyone else that we are now attracted to our own blood? I asked conversationally.
Before anyone could answer, we heard a roar of pain. I swiveled around and my little fly heart stopped.
There was Tabetha, in her white tiger morph, now red with blood. She was bound with some kind of alien ropes. She was weak. She was dying.
I couldn't help her! I was a fly! I was nothing!
~I'll kill that bastard, Rachel hissed.
~That was your first touch of pure, undiluted pain, the Visser sneered. ~How many more times will it take? Three? Four? Five, perhaps.
~A thousand times and I will never let one of your slimy compatriots enter my head, Tabetha snarled.
Visser Three sneered with his Andalite eyes. ~Be ready for a thousand and one. He pushed the button on the contraption in front of him.
Tabetha screamed again. My heart cried out for her. God, was Jake really just going to sit there and watch this? We had to do something!
I started to fly downward, when I heard Jake's voice in my head. Don't do anything stupid, he had warned me.
Unwillingly, I soared back up to where I had been. I saw Tabetha sag against her ropes, heard her gasping for breath.
~An interesting thing about this device, Visser Three said. ~The pain and injuries you are sustaining do not go away when you morph. The pain stays with you. How much damage am I doing to your true body, as well as this astounding Earth specimen?
~There's no way, Cassie whispered. ~That's not possible-is it?
~The Yeerks wouldn't just design that for us, I said. ~And anyways, Ax said the Yeerks don't come up with anything on their own.
Even in my sick state of worry, something clicked.
~Oh, my God, I whispered.
~What? Jake asked.
~The Yeerks steal all the technology they get from other species, right? There's only one species with the morphing ability, so only one who would use it to punish their people.
~Oh, God, Cassie said. ~That's sick. That's really, really, sick…
~But why would the Andalites need torture of this magnitude? Rachel wondered.
~Can't you guess? What would be the worst thing for an Andalite to do? I said. ~Go over to the Yeerks. And that means…
~You guys, if you can hear me, there's traitors on the Andalite home world, Tabetha said. I jumped, as much as you can in midair.
I felt a sudden rush of pride towards her. Even half-dead, she reached the same conclusion I had.
~We're in here, Tabetha, Jake said. ~Tobias and Ax went to get Erek. He's gonna get you out.
~Ah. Good, she said. Then she hesitated. ~Is Marco…
~I'm here, I said quickly. She sighed in relief.
~Thank God. I was so scared you were dead, when I saw the way you looked…
` ~That was twice, Andalite, the Visser said. ~My patience is waning, as I'm sure is your strength.
~Let me ask you this, Visser-what good is a morph-capable body if all the morphs are injured beyond repair? Tabetha asked, dripping with disdain.
He hesitated. Obviously this thought had not occurred to him.
~We've got Erek! we heard Tobias cry faintly. ~If you guys can get into battle morphs! We're gonna need backup!
~Tabetha, we'll be back and be much bigger! I promised, zooming out the window.
~Take your time. I'm in no hurry. Then, another animal roar. Obviously the Visser had decided it was worth it.
We returned to the spot where we had demorphed before. I had more energy than I had in a while. I demorphed, than quickly morphed to my gorilla.
Hoping he wouldn't die this time.
I glanced over and saw Jake with fur rippling down his back. Cassie turning wolf. Rachel, growing to her massive grizzly bear. Ax landed and demorphed.
Ax was Ax. If you ever see an Andalite in battle, you'll know why.
Erek came up to us. "You know I cannot do violence, right?"
~Yes, Erek, we know, I said. ~Just grab Tabetha and get out. We'll cover you.
"You people are crazy. You're relying on an android who can't fight."
~Yeah, well, the whole world is relying on a bunch of idiot kids, I said impatiently. ~Let's just go!
We rumbled forward, praying no Dracon Beam saw us. We were an incredible little menagerie. We might as well have had a sign that said, "Shoot me, I'm an Andalite."
We don't want to let the Yeerks know who we are, after all.
We barged into the facility, in one huge animal roar, drowning out Tabetha's fresh roar of pain. ~Andalites! Visser Three snapped. ~Kill them! Kill them!
~Rachel, on your left!
~Behind you!
~Oh! I'm hurt bad!
~Marco, duck!
~Cassie, get out, you're hurt too bad!
~Erek has me! Tabetha yelled from outside. ~Get the hell out of there!
We bailed as fast as we could, Hork-Bajir stopping at the door to keep from being seen. However, several people saw the small zoo that ran out of the facility, after a teenager carrying a white Siberian tiger. I wondered what they would tell their families when they got home.
We raced through the trees, far behind Erek and Tabetha. Finally we found them, Tabetha, her human self, lying on the ground, Erek sitting next to her.
Her injuries looked even worse in human form. I demorphed as fast as I could and knelt down beside her.
"Oh, my God," I breathed. "Tabetha…"
She smiled at me. I could tell it hurt, but she did anyway. "Looks worse than it is," she said softly.
"Liar."
"I tried to repair her wounds," Erek said, "but could not. There is something strange about this. This is not like the Yeerks."
"No," I said. "But it's like the Andalites."
Ax's stalk eyes snapped up at me. ~What? How dare you accuse Andalites of such cruelty! We would never do such a thing to…
"Ax, that device was Andalite-created," Jake said softly.
No one moved. Ax sagged. ~Wha—what? They made that terrible, evil…
"Yes," Cassie said. "To punish those who help the Yeerks. The pain and injuries travel with a person when they morph."
Suddenly I saw Tabetha shudder. "Tabetha?" I said, my voice shaking. "Tabetha, are you there?"
"Hurts…not…gonna…make it…"
"Do something, damn you!" I roared, grabbing the android and shaking him. "Your creators made you so powerful, save her! Help her!"
"I can't!" Erek yelled. His hologram was crying. "I can't help her! I tried! I would save her if I could!"
"Hold on, Tabetha," Cassie said, kneeling next to her and clutching her hand. "Come on, Tabetha, you can make it."
~We have to take her to a hospital! Tobias said.
I shook my head. "Any hospital might have a Controller in it. They may recognize the wounds. She could be infested, then what?"
"Marco…" she breathed. "Hold on to me…"
I grabbed her other hand. "Hang on, Tabetha," I said. "You're gonna be fine. You'll be fine. Those wounds didn't kill a tiger, they're not gonna kill you. You can make it. Come on…"
I carried on like that for a while. Cassie stayed on the other side, murmuring similar things. Rachel, Jake, and Erek stood by watching. Ax was diminished, and Tobias was glaring down from a nearby tree.
~My own people, Ax muttered, ~my own people…
Slowly, so slowly, Tabetha's breathing returned to normal. Blood came back into her far-too-pale face. "That's it, girl," I whispered. "Come on. You can do this."
Finally, she seemed to be mostly back to normal. She sat up slowly.
"Man," she whispered. "That hurt. So much. I had no idea a machine could cause that much pain."
"Just watch a TV with *NSYNC on it," I said. "The pain Visser Three put you through will seem pale by comparison."
She chuckled, then coughed. "Ow," she said. Suddenly a look came across her face. "Ax…the kid…did this hurt it?"
~I do not know, Ax said. ~This technology is unknown to me. However, as low as Andalites may stoop, I don't think they would ever hurt an unborn child. That is the most sacred thing.
"But aren't most Andalites who get tortured males?" Tabetha pressed.
~Again, I do not know.
Tabetha let out a hiss of pain as she leaned against a tree. "Erek? Is there any way you can check?"
"Certainly," he said. He stared at her stomach.
Maybe it's just me, but an android staring at the stomach of the girl I…well, am fond of just creeps me out. Tabetha gripped my hand.
"The baby is fine," Erek said. Tabetha exhaled.
We all sat silent for a moment. Finally, Cassie said, "Six more months."
No one spoke. "Yeah. Six short months," Tabetha said. Then her eyes darkened. I felt a rush of anger and hatred. I could tell by the way Rachel's nails dug into her hands she felt the same way.
"We should go home," Jake finally said. "Marco, will your dad be cool if Tabetha stays with you for awhile? In the condition she's in, she can't stay outside."
I shrugged. "Sure," I said.
"We can keep Tabetha with us," Erek volunteered. He seemed desperate to help after not being able to heal Tabetha. "Maybe we can find something to help her."
"Fine by me," I said. "I won't have to explain to Dad why I started bringing chicks over to spend the night."
"He'd know immediately why," Rachel said. "Pity."
"And Xena puts another spear in me!"
The others morphed and headed home. I went with Tabetha to Erek's house.
"You know, Erek," I said to him, "I've always wondered, do Chee come in designer colors? Or are you all that ivory color?"
"I've always wanted a glow-in-the-dark Chee," Tabetha chirped.
"Seeing as we can have hologram emitters, it seems ridiculous to make us different colors," Erek said. "But I must confessed, I always have wanted to be a glow-in-the-dark Chee."
We laughed. It seemed very normal. I liked it.
Strange, that normal has turned into talking about glow-in-the-dark androids.
I seriously need a padded room.
We reached Erek's house. As soon as we came in, Mr. King rushed up to us.
"Tabetha, we have a place made for you," he said. "There's a Chee there who is specifically designed to heal, even more so than other Chee. She'll try to fix you."
"Wha-oh yeah, Chee-net," Tabetha said, smiling. Mr. King escorted her upstairs. Erek and I were left alone.
"Erek, listen, I'm sorry…" I began, but he waved his hand.
"Don't worry about it. I understand."
I felt a rush of gratitude that I couldn't ever define. So I just said, "Look after her, will you?" and left.
Especially tell me what you think of Marco, I think I captured him as a character really well.
Sorry about the whole problem with the thought-speech, it only does it when I upload it it looks fine here. Please read my story anyways!!!!:)
We were in yet another of many battles. And we were losing. Badly.
I felt a stab at my stomach. A hork-bajir had sliced my gorilla body open. I barely registered the pain.
~Okay, everybody, pull back! Jake yelled. ~Get out!
I stumbled toward the door, feeling like I was about to black out. Dimly I realized that my gorilla body was dying. Again.
~Somebody get Marco! Cassie cried.
Rachel snatched me with her grizzly paws and we ran out the door. I blacked out.
"Marco! Marco! Demorph!"
Slowly I felt the changes begin. My coarse gorilla hair shank into my arms and I stood, fully human, still shaky.
"Well, that was truly a marvelous Animorphs Moment," I said lightly. "I love it when my guts are outside my body."
There was a grim silence. No one looked at me. I scanned around.
"Where's Tabetha?" I demanded.
No one answered. Suddenly, I knew.
"Oh, man," I said, sinking to the ground. "Oh, man, oh, man, oh man."
"She's not dead," Rachel said gruffly.
"Yeah? You think that's any great comfort, Xena? If she's not now she will be in about five seconds!"
"She's the only person I can think of other than me who would still be alive at this point," Rachel snapped. "You think she's stupid? Weak?"
"Of course not," I retorted. "But even you're not stupid enough to think she can take on Visser Three single-handedly!"
~So, one of the Andalite Bandits has decided to stay and play with us, we heard a thought-speak voice sneer. ~Let's see how much pain it takes to force him to demorph.
It took approximately three seconds for these words to sink in. When it did, I felt the changes of gorilla start in me. I didn't tell them to, they just did. Slowly I changed back into my normal self. Tobias took off, headed back towards the facility.
"Tobias!" Jake called. "You can't go in there alone!"
~I'm not gonna leave her in there! he yelled back. ~You don't know what kind of torture they do-I wouldn't leave my uncle in there, much less Tabetha!
Rachel began morphing too. "Stop!" Jake said. "We can't just barge right in there, we'll get killed!"
"The Chee," I said suddenly.
"They're non-violent," Cassie said.
"So? Non-violence doesn't mean they can't go in there, grab Tabetha, and bring her out."
Jake thought for about four seconds. "Okay," he said finally. "Ax, Tobias and Marco, go get Erek. Cassie and Rachel, come inside with me as flies so we can see what's going on." Rachel reversed her morph, and Tobias turned around in mid-air. He was already headed towards Erek's.
"I'm going in," I said instantly. Jake shook his head.
"We need you to hurry and get to Erek's."
"Tobias is already on the way. You don't need that many people to go to an android's house."
Jake sighed. "Fine. But don't do anything stupid, alright?"
The insult prickled my neck. "When have I ever done anything stupid when it was close to me? As I recall that was you, Jake."
~Marco, that was uncalled for, Ax snapped, already morphing.
Jake looked at the dirt. I didn't care. I just focused on the fly morph as Jake, Cassie, and Rachel did the same. Normally Cassie is the fastest morpher. This time I beat her, and was zooming towards the facility.
We crawled through a crack in the door. It was easy to find the place, all we had to do was smell for blood.
~You know, does it bother anyone else that we are now attracted to our own blood? I asked conversationally.
Before anyone could answer, we heard a roar of pain. I swiveled around and my little fly heart stopped.
There was Tabetha, in her white tiger morph, now red with blood. She was bound with some kind of alien ropes. She was weak. She was dying.
I couldn't help her! I was a fly! I was nothing!
~I'll kill that bastard, Rachel hissed.
~That was your first touch of pure, undiluted pain, the Visser sneered. ~How many more times will it take? Three? Four? Five, perhaps.
~A thousand times and I will never let one of your slimy compatriots enter my head, Tabetha snarled.
Visser Three sneered with his Andalite eyes. ~Be ready for a thousand and one. He pushed the button on the contraption in front of him.
Tabetha screamed again. My heart cried out for her. God, was Jake really just going to sit there and watch this? We had to do something!
I started to fly downward, when I heard Jake's voice in my head. Don't do anything stupid, he had warned me.
Unwillingly, I soared back up to where I had been. I saw Tabetha sag against her ropes, heard her gasping for breath.
~An interesting thing about this device, Visser Three said. ~The pain and injuries you are sustaining do not go away when you morph. The pain stays with you. How much damage am I doing to your true body, as well as this astounding Earth specimen?
~There's no way, Cassie whispered. ~That's not possible-is it?
~The Yeerks wouldn't just design that for us, I said. ~And anyways, Ax said the Yeerks don't come up with anything on their own.
Even in my sick state of worry, something clicked.
~Oh, my God, I whispered.
~What? Jake asked.
~The Yeerks steal all the technology they get from other species, right? There's only one species with the morphing ability, so only one who would use it to punish their people.
~Oh, God, Cassie said. ~That's sick. That's really, really, sick…
~But why would the Andalites need torture of this magnitude? Rachel wondered.
~Can't you guess? What would be the worst thing for an Andalite to do? I said. ~Go over to the Yeerks. And that means…
~You guys, if you can hear me, there's traitors on the Andalite home world, Tabetha said. I jumped, as much as you can in midair.
I felt a sudden rush of pride towards her. Even half-dead, she reached the same conclusion I had.
~We're in here, Tabetha, Jake said. ~Tobias and Ax went to get Erek. He's gonna get you out.
~Ah. Good, she said. Then she hesitated. ~Is Marco…
~I'm here, I said quickly. She sighed in relief.
~Thank God. I was so scared you were dead, when I saw the way you looked…
` ~That was twice, Andalite, the Visser said. ~My patience is waning, as I'm sure is your strength.
~Let me ask you this, Visser-what good is a morph-capable body if all the morphs are injured beyond repair? Tabetha asked, dripping with disdain.
He hesitated. Obviously this thought had not occurred to him.
~We've got Erek! we heard Tobias cry faintly. ~If you guys can get into battle morphs! We're gonna need backup!
~Tabetha, we'll be back and be much bigger! I promised, zooming out the window.
~Take your time. I'm in no hurry. Then, another animal roar. Obviously the Visser had decided it was worth it.
We returned to the spot where we had demorphed before. I had more energy than I had in a while. I demorphed, than quickly morphed to my gorilla.
Hoping he wouldn't die this time.
I glanced over and saw Jake with fur rippling down his back. Cassie turning wolf. Rachel, growing to her massive grizzly bear. Ax landed and demorphed.
Ax was Ax. If you ever see an Andalite in battle, you'll know why.
Erek came up to us. "You know I cannot do violence, right?"
~Yes, Erek, we know, I said. ~Just grab Tabetha and get out. We'll cover you.
"You people are crazy. You're relying on an android who can't fight."
~Yeah, well, the whole world is relying on a bunch of idiot kids, I said impatiently. ~Let's just go!
We rumbled forward, praying no Dracon Beam saw us. We were an incredible little menagerie. We might as well have had a sign that said, "Shoot me, I'm an Andalite."
We don't want to let the Yeerks know who we are, after all.
We barged into the facility, in one huge animal roar, drowning out Tabetha's fresh roar of pain. ~Andalites! Visser Three snapped. ~Kill them! Kill them!
~Rachel, on your left!
~Behind you!
~Oh! I'm hurt bad!
~Marco, duck!
~Cassie, get out, you're hurt too bad!
~Erek has me! Tabetha yelled from outside. ~Get the hell out of there!
We bailed as fast as we could, Hork-Bajir stopping at the door to keep from being seen. However, several people saw the small zoo that ran out of the facility, after a teenager carrying a white Siberian tiger. I wondered what they would tell their families when they got home.
We raced through the trees, far behind Erek and Tabetha. Finally we found them, Tabetha, her human self, lying on the ground, Erek sitting next to her.
Her injuries looked even worse in human form. I demorphed as fast as I could and knelt down beside her.
"Oh, my God," I breathed. "Tabetha…"
She smiled at me. I could tell it hurt, but she did anyway. "Looks worse than it is," she said softly.
"Liar."
"I tried to repair her wounds," Erek said, "but could not. There is something strange about this. This is not like the Yeerks."
"No," I said. "But it's like the Andalites."
Ax's stalk eyes snapped up at me. ~What? How dare you accuse Andalites of such cruelty! We would never do such a thing to…
"Ax, that device was Andalite-created," Jake said softly.
No one moved. Ax sagged. ~Wha—what? They made that terrible, evil…
"Yes," Cassie said. "To punish those who help the Yeerks. The pain and injuries travel with a person when they morph."
Suddenly I saw Tabetha shudder. "Tabetha?" I said, my voice shaking. "Tabetha, are you there?"
"Hurts…not…gonna…make it…"
"Do something, damn you!" I roared, grabbing the android and shaking him. "Your creators made you so powerful, save her! Help her!"
"I can't!" Erek yelled. His hologram was crying. "I can't help her! I tried! I would save her if I could!"
"Hold on, Tabetha," Cassie said, kneeling next to her and clutching her hand. "Come on, Tabetha, you can make it."
~We have to take her to a hospital! Tobias said.
I shook my head. "Any hospital might have a Controller in it. They may recognize the wounds. She could be infested, then what?"
"Marco…" she breathed. "Hold on to me…"
I grabbed her other hand. "Hang on, Tabetha," I said. "You're gonna be fine. You'll be fine. Those wounds didn't kill a tiger, they're not gonna kill you. You can make it. Come on…"
I carried on like that for a while. Cassie stayed on the other side, murmuring similar things. Rachel, Jake, and Erek stood by watching. Ax was diminished, and Tobias was glaring down from a nearby tree.
~My own people, Ax muttered, ~my own people…
Slowly, so slowly, Tabetha's breathing returned to normal. Blood came back into her far-too-pale face. "That's it, girl," I whispered. "Come on. You can do this."
Finally, she seemed to be mostly back to normal. She sat up slowly.
"Man," she whispered. "That hurt. So much. I had no idea a machine could cause that much pain."
"Just watch a TV with *NSYNC on it," I said. "The pain Visser Three put you through will seem pale by comparison."
She chuckled, then coughed. "Ow," she said. Suddenly a look came across her face. "Ax…the kid…did this hurt it?"
~I do not know, Ax said. ~This technology is unknown to me. However, as low as Andalites may stoop, I don't think they would ever hurt an unborn child. That is the most sacred thing.
"But aren't most Andalites who get tortured males?" Tabetha pressed.
~Again, I do not know.
Tabetha let out a hiss of pain as she leaned against a tree. "Erek? Is there any way you can check?"
"Certainly," he said. He stared at her stomach.
Maybe it's just me, but an android staring at the stomach of the girl I…well, am fond of just creeps me out. Tabetha gripped my hand.
"The baby is fine," Erek said. Tabetha exhaled.
We all sat silent for a moment. Finally, Cassie said, "Six more months."
No one spoke. "Yeah. Six short months," Tabetha said. Then her eyes darkened. I felt a rush of anger and hatred. I could tell by the way Rachel's nails dug into her hands she felt the same way.
"We should go home," Jake finally said. "Marco, will your dad be cool if Tabetha stays with you for awhile? In the condition she's in, she can't stay outside."
I shrugged. "Sure," I said.
"We can keep Tabetha with us," Erek volunteered. He seemed desperate to help after not being able to heal Tabetha. "Maybe we can find something to help her."
"Fine by me," I said. "I won't have to explain to Dad why I started bringing chicks over to spend the night."
"He'd know immediately why," Rachel said. "Pity."
"And Xena puts another spear in me!"
The others morphed and headed home. I went with Tabetha to Erek's house.
"You know, Erek," I said to him, "I've always wondered, do Chee come in designer colors? Or are you all that ivory color?"
"I've always wanted a glow-in-the-dark Chee," Tabetha chirped.
"Seeing as we can have hologram emitters, it seems ridiculous to make us different colors," Erek said. "But I must confessed, I always have wanted to be a glow-in-the-dark Chee."
We laughed. It seemed very normal. I liked it.
Strange, that normal has turned into talking about glow-in-the-dark androids.
I seriously need a padded room.
We reached Erek's house. As soon as we came in, Mr. King rushed up to us.
"Tabetha, we have a place made for you," he said. "There's a Chee there who is specifically designed to heal, even more so than other Chee. She'll try to fix you."
"Wha-oh yeah, Chee-net," Tabetha said, smiling. Mr. King escorted her upstairs. Erek and I were left alone.
"Erek, listen, I'm sorry…" I began, but he waved his hand.
"Don't worry about it. I understand."
I felt a rush of gratitude that I couldn't ever define. So I just said, "Look after her, will you?" and left.
