As we headed back to the fighter, Ithiell decided now was the time to yell at me.

(That was the dumbest thing you have ever done! It's even more idiotic than any of the things Robert has done!) He snapped at me privately as we all walked back as wolves. He was up front, with Jake and Ax in his Andalite form. I was back with Cassie and Amanda, slowly falling behind both of them.

(You're welcome) I muttered.

(And Robert has done some idiotic things in my books. But this? This goes beyond stupid, beyond crazy...)

(Sometimes crazy works) I put in, hoping he'd stop sometime soon.

(But crazy nearly got you killed! And if not you, then someone else. Robert was...)

(Robert does 'idiotic' things too, but I don't see you going off at him) I said quietly.

(But you know better! You're the smart one Jade. You always see things I miss, and you always calculate...)

(You make me sound like I'm a computer. And by the way, if I was the 'smart one', I'd know how to fly that stupid fighter)

(It's not about what you know, it's about what you see! Kehalsh imperati!)

(And in English, that means...)

(You don't want to know)

He was silent for a moment, before ripping into me again.

(How could you?! A few more seconds and we could have...)

(You heard what Jake said! A few more seconds could have cost those Hork-Bajir their lives!) I argued. I didn't know why I was bothering to even argue with him. In every way, he was right. I was just making him angrier. Plus, I knew he cared about me. I was his friend, and...

(We could have created the diversion ourselves! Or better yet, we could have turned that troop into smoke dust if we had known...)

Then again, he did tend to go overboard.

After a while he stopped, and I heard him growling a little before I knew he'd settled down for good.

(Are you ok?) It was Cassie, and she had pulled back alongside me.

(Uh, yeah. Sure. Why?) I tried to sound cheerful, but even my thought voice came out choked.

(Because you're hanging your head, and wolves don't usually hang their heads like you're doing) she replied.

(No, no. I'm just... a little tired, that's all) I lied.

(Is Ithiell... is he talking to you?) She saw right through my lie, and I knew instantly that I'd underestimated her.

(Uh... yeah. Just the usual 'you shouldn't have done that' speech. He's kind of our leader, and...)

(Yeah, I know) she replied, picking up the pace a little, and I was forced to follow her lead, keeping pace with her.

When the two hours were almost up for the Animorphs, we stopped in a little clearing so they could demorph, and we decided to do the same. I was glad to be myself again, and I sat down heavily on the grass, feeling good just to be alive. Everyone looked exhausted, so Jake told us to take ten.

Amanda and Marco collapsed on the grass beside me as Cassie went to talk to Jake. Rachel and Tobias sat a bit further away, and I heard their muted voices.

Amazingly, I saw Robert walk up to Ax, and start talking to him. I heard snippets of the conversation, and I heard the word Ellimist more than once.

Ithiell came to me then, with Rtaia not far behind him.

"We're going to fly back to the fighter, Rtaia and I"

"Why?" I asked "We've don't need to hurry"

"I would feel better if we got to the fighter" Was Rtaias response.

"Wait, what's going on?" Amanda asked, getting up and staring at the both of them.

"Nothing, it's just if someone finds the fighter... well..." Ithiell let it hang in the air.

"Yeah, we know. Just... can you tell Jake first?" Marco asked him.

"That's exactly what we were going to do" he smiled, then gave Amanda a quick hug, before going to Jake. There was a short conversation between both of them, then Jake smiled, and before I knew it they had both taken off, one a pigeon hawk, the other a golden eagle.

Amanda sat back down, still a little unsettled.

"Mand, don't worry. He's just worried that a camper or something will find our fighter" I assured her, laying back on the grass and looking up at the clouds.

"Yeah, I know" she lay down next to me, and Marco soon followed.

"Ahh, this is the life" he sighed, his hands clasped behind his head.

"What? Being chased by aliens who are everywhere, and meeting up with a being that makes us look like ants compared to it?" Amanda asked a little sarcastically.

"No, he means just now. We're all right just now" I took a deep breath, and I out of the corner of my eye I saw Marco smiling.

A few seconds later I heard a flutter of wings, and saw Tobias flying off.

"Where's he going?" I asked.

"He's our eye in the sky. He doesn't like to be grounded for long. You know, just in case" Rachel said joining us. Jake soon told us to get up.

"Back to wolf?" Amanda asked.

"Yeah. We don't..." before he could finish, he was interrupted by Tobias, who sounded panicked.

(Uh, guys? We've got a major problem. The Blade ship is heading this way)

"What?!!" Jake cried.

(The Blade ship. It's not in full view, but I see a shimmer of a cloaking... well, it looks big enough to...)

"BATTLE MORPHS!!" Jake yelled, and I already saw orange fur beginning to sprout on his features.

"What about us?" Amanda, sounding panicked.

"You heard him, change! Polar bear!" I cried, beginning my own change into the white tiger that had saved my life more than once.

"Oh man, they'll find the free Hork-Bajir if they keep coming this way!" Robert snapped as his back legs reversed direction and thick black fur sprouted. Panther. He was going...

(Then we'll just have to guide them away from here?!) Jake replied fiercely.

(Sounds like there's another one of those crazy ideas forming in your head) Marco said as I noticed he'd become the gorilla again.

(Got any better ideas smart...)

(No no, I'm just saying I know this is going to be crazy)

(You got that right)

Whatever way it went, I knew it wasn't going to be good...