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I kept the now-helpless squid on the surface as Jake, Cassie, Marco, Ax, and finally Tobias
acquired it. It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t exactly a party, as human and Andalite and hawk wallowed in the waves, pressing hands and talons against the rubbery creature.
Fortunately the squid responded normally to being acquired. It grew calm and peaceful.
<Your turn, Rachel,> Jake said.
I demorphed, shrinking from building size to human size. The demorph was a bit more normal
than the morph. I shrank in proportion for most of it.
Then, at last, I was just a very out-of-place girl, up to my neck in cold saltwater stained with squid ink and blood. I treaded water to stay near the cephalopod’s big arrow head. I needed to touch the creature. I ended up swallowing about a gallon of inky seawater. I had to extend the acquiring phase to hold the squid still for Tobias.
Like I said. Not exactly a party.
When we were done I morphed back to whale to haul the squid away to a safe distance. Once
released the poor squid took off, jetting down into the relative safety of the water beneath us.