40 - 8/9 - Leg Blown Off

<Surrender!> he bellowed in my head.

I didn't answer. Hoping that maybe, just maybe, if I kept quiet, he would think I was only some dumb bird.

Not for the first time, I underestimated him.

Tsseeewww!

He fired!

I saw the flash before I felt the pain.

<Aaaggh!>

One of my talons, completely gone.

<That was a warning shot,> he said.

Some warning.

You can't imagine how disturbing it is to look down and see that one of your body parts is missing. No matter what form you're in. See the blank space where it used to be. See the blood and gore oozing out of the stump.

<Surrender,> he commanded. <Or die.>

Not much of a choice there.

<Get the others! Find Ax!> I told Tobias privately. <Hurry!>

To Gafinilan: <What do you want me to do?>

He kept the shredder aimed at me. Didn't seem to see Tobias winging off, or didn't care.

<Land in the backyard, beside the greenhouse,> he instructed. <Then, demorph.>

(...)

<So, my eyes did not deceive me.> Gafinilan stood there, all three gazillion muscled Andalite pounds of him. <When I first saw you it was night, the light was poor . . . but you are human. Not Andalite.>

I climbed to my feet. No worse for the missing talon. Just a little muddy from rolling around on the ground.

"It looks that way."

Gafinilan poked the shredder at me like a scolding finger.

<Who gave you the morphing technology?> he demanded.

"What difference does that make?"