Happy belated christmas guys!

I know the chapter name is a bit random but i just started learning portuguese and those are some of the only words i know. And it's supposed to mean Excuse me. also i can say dog, cat, duck, frog...

I'm so excited!

SPOV

"We're going down guys!" Shay yelled.

She didn't know the exact location. When she had last spoken to David he had said that only three or four people knew, the rest needed programmed position finders and so he couldn't tell her. Shay had tried wheedling the location out of him but David just kept repeating over and over again: "Mums the word."

Shay did however know the general area, and she along with all of her group would know when they got close.

"So, are you going to tell me where we're going yet or what Ms. Mystery?" Tachs asked.

"I like being mysterious. It makes me feel dangerous." She said dangerous with a lavish sexy voice that sent both her and Tachs into bursts of laughter.

"Meh. I think you're adorable when you're trying to be mysterious."

"Trying? Adorable? What's this nonsense?" Shay said lowering her eyebrows in a half accusing- half questioning expression.

"You do. Your mouth gets all pouty and set like you know the secret to the universe and you raise your eyebrows in an 'I-see' sort of way. You look sho cute!" Tachs puckered his lips like a baby on the last words.

Shay grumbled. "I think that's just your cover story. Really you're terrified of my hidden knowledge. You are just so supremely frustrated that you don't know the wonders that hide behind my petrifying eyes."

Tachs laughed. "You're right. It's killing me!" he said sarcastically. He threw his hand to his heart as if he was having a heart attack. Unfortunately as soon as he pulled his arm in it sent the whole hoverboard out of balance.

She and Tachs went tumbling to the ground. Shay screamed involuntarily, even though they had been mere feet above the ground seeing as they had been slowly descending with the rest of the group for the past five minutes.

At the last minute Tachs jumped off, landed on his feet and held both arms aloft just in time to catch Shay in a baby cradle.

"Have a tumble there fair maiden?"

"Pfft! Fair maiden my ass." She tried to jump out of Tachs' arms but he held her firm. She couldn't move.

"You're right. You're more of the damsel in distress variety."

"Ugh! Let me go Tachs!" she struggled against his grip. He still didn't comply.

"What will you give me if I do?"

"I can tell you what you'll get if you don't" she said raising her fist.

Tachs laughed and started running to catch up with the other group members who had landed a little while after Tachs and Shay and were now waiting in a clearing a little ahead.

"Let me go Tachs! Put me down right now!" She yelled. She began swatting at his head.

"Hey!" he said. But he still didn't put her down. Instead he shifted her around so that she was now hanging over his shoulder with a very good view of his tush. Or bad, if you were someone like Shay who had never had a wish to have a one on one conversation with Tachs' backside.

"Tachs! Get your ass out of my face!"

"Correction my dear Shay. Get your face out of my ass."

"You put me here!" Shay exclaimed.

"That...is true. Ah well. You win some you lose some." Tachs shrugged his shoulders under Shay's stomach. She felt she might throw up.

Shay screamed and screamed and started pounding Tachs' back with her fists.

"Put"—pound—"me"—pound—"down!"

"Well well well, what's going on here?" came Fausto's voice. Shay heard something in his voice she couldn't instantly identify. It was some sort of edginess that he wanted to hide from them.

"Just taking Shay-la here for an afternoon stroll." Tachs said. She could hear the smirk in his voice, which infuriated her to no end.

"He won't put me down!" she squealed.

Ho laughed.

"Ho!"

"What? It's funny." He said innocently.

"Hey Shay, how's the view?" came another former Cutter.

Shay screamed in exasperation. "Will this day never end?" She belted at no one in particular.

There came a sigh from Ho. She heard him come around to her side of Tachs and his grippy shoes promptly came into view. He hoisted her down off of Tachs' shoulder and set her upright.

Shay hugged Ho. "Thank-you! About time, too."

Then she turned around to see Tachs smiling playfully at her. She casually walked up to him and with extreme delicacy and precision slapped him across the face.

He held his cheek and began to heatedly say something but Shay wagged her finger in his face and in a tone of finality said "NEVER AGAIN."

He glowered down at her but then his frown turned into a goofy smile. "Aw. You think that your finger is gunna stop me? Schweety, it'd take rabid monkeys to keep me from fireman carrying you again. Just because it's so damn fun."

Shay sighed tiredly. She just couldn't win. She looked over at Fausto. "Do you know where I could get rabid monkeys?" she asked.

"'Fraid not." He said.

"Well, I'm basically screwed." She said and then she walked through her group, snapping her fingers to summon her hoverboard away from Tachs. The rest of her group followed her deeper into the forest.

The trees grew denser as they left the circle of the clearing. A million animal sounds reached their ears. Birds clicking and singing to each other. Chipmunks and other rodents having fast discussions with eachother while scampering across the ground or through the trees. Bugs made strange noises, some from chirping to wheezing. Gnats and fruit flies flew in circles around the group and had to be constantly swatted away in order to see. The underbrush was getting thicker and thicker and had to be tackled away. The people guiding Zane and the carrier still on hoverboards sometimes had to climb up trees to get the hoverboards above certain brambly areas. Some of the group had even taken out their old ceremonial knives and were chopping manically at the vines, trying unsuccessfully to get though the forests many reaching arms.

"Do we have to go by foot? This is a total waste of my time and energy." Ho whined. When he saw Shay's face he immediately knew his mistake.

"No, I didn't mean—" he began, but Shay cut him off.

"Oh, so saving Zane's life is a waste of your time? Really, because I was under the impression that you cared about Zane's well being, but you know maybe that's just me. You know, I don't see anyone else complaining. They seem willing to go ahead and recue Zane." She waved a hand wildly around at the surrounding group. They all gave nervous nods, almost like they were afraid she'd hurt them if they disagreed. Good, she thought, I'm sick of people like Ho, who just don't care.She was remembering the time when Ho had hesitated before coming to help at the hospital. She knew he had no right to blow up at him now but it had made her a little edgy that Ho might be thinking of leaving them for Diego. She didn't know what she would do without Ho. He was her wingman. The person she could always count on. She might not be able to keep this up if he deserted her, too.

"Oh, and by the way Ho. Yes, we do need to go by foot. Otherwise we would miss those."

She pointed ahead to where two dolls hung from their necks from a single tree. They were made to look like twig and other rough materials, but Shay could sense the City power behind them. When she stuck out her hand it began to give small shaking movements. As she reached out farther, it began to hake violently.

"We're here." She said.