B22C17 - More Speed

But there wasn't time for that. Because now I could see the black-and-white pattern racing at me out of the gloom. He was lit up by a flash of lightning. He looked like some weird cross between a cow and a bus.

But this creature had a very large mouth and a lot of teeth. And he was very, very fast. He was aiming straight for Ax.

<I'm right here, David,> I said, and gave a kick with my tail. He veered, changing course, and hurtled toward me.

I kicked hard and rocketed straight at him, like I was aiming for his nose.

Closer. . . Closer. . . CloserCloserCloser!

I turned my flippers and went straight up. UpUpUp, skimming past David's blunt snout!

WHOOOSH! Out of the water, into rain and lightning. High as I could fly. I hung in midair, looked down as gravity grabbed me again, and right below me I saw the killer whale's open mouth.

Falling! Falling toward that open mouth!

<Nooooo!>

But David was slipping back, too. He hadn't had time to get himself ready. He was slipping back beneath the water, and I was falling toward him . . .

SPLASH! I hit water, not teeth, and I kicked madly to get speed. Where was David? I couldn't see him!

Echolocate, Rachel. Come on, concentrate!

I fired a burst. The echo was instantaneous. He was behind me. I jerked left and the big black-and-white snout went barreling past.

From nowhere another dolphin appeared. It rammed David's right eye with its beak, then slid down beneath the great monster.

<Ahhh!> David cried. But he kept his focus on me. I couldn't believe how quickly he turned. How quickly he built up speed to come back after me.

This was impossible! I was playing tag and I was it.

I rolled over, belly up, reversed course and slid beneath him, crossing sideways, literally rubbing belly to belly. Then I came up his right side, halfway down his body, back behind the tall, graceful dorsal fin.

Now I was out of his sight. As long as I stayed right there with him, move for move, he wouldn't see me, let alone reach me.

But David wasn't content to play tag with me. He targeted the next dolphin he saw and I couldn't match his speed.

As his tail blew past, I clamped my jaw down on it.