[Junior Jedi Knights] - 02(8)

That was part of the Jedi Code. Anakin repeated it over and over in his head. He saw the purplish rocks beneath his scraped hands begin to lighten as dawn threatened to cover the moon in its soft glow. Anakin climbed faster. They stopped five meters from the entrance to the avril’s nest. Anakin could hear the creature shrieking within the shallow cave. He and Tahiri crept forward, trying not to dislodge any rocks. They didn’t want the bird to know they were there. Carefully they moved toward the opening, peeking around rocks until they were directly below the cave.

Anakin raised himself up slowly and peered into the dimly lit cavern. He smelled the foul air and heard the rustling and chirping of the creature’s chicks before his eyes grew used to the cave. Then he saw Lyric. She was alive. Her body hung over the edge of the avril’s nest, ringlets of red hair reaching down to the ground. As she had done before, she was chirping, trying to sound like the mottled black chicks around her. Anakin could hear Lyric struggling for the breath she needed to make the noises.

She could barely gasp out the sounds. Still, her efforts had been enough to confuse the creature, whose black head was cocked to one side as it towered above her. But Lyric’s efforts were not enough to send the avril out looking for more food. Anakin crouched back down and crawled over to Tahiri.

“I’ve got to go in there,” Anakin mouthed to his friend.

A look of alarm spread across Tahiri’s features.

“I’m going to try to get the avril to leave her nest to search for more food.”

“I’m going too,” Tahiri mouthed back.

“No, stay hidden in the rocks. I might need your help, or Lyric might. It won’t do us any good if the avril attacks us both,” Anakin whispered furiously.

“I don’t like this,” Tahiri mouthed with a scowl.

Anakin turned and crept back up to the nest. Then he let out a shriek. The avril burst out of the cave and loomed above him, her beak open wide in an ear-shattering cry. Anakin stood fast and shrieked again, in what he hoped was the sound of one of the creature’s chicks. He saw the bird’s beady eyes boring down on him. And when the avril rushed forward, he was struck by foul, sour air. With a swift motion, the bird grasped him in its beak and flung him into her nest. Anakin curled into a ball next to the chicks and continued to shriek. The avril began to hop from foot to foot, wings flapping in distress.

That’s right, Anakin thought, I’m not dinner. Go out and find some food for your hungry babies. Lyric continued to chirp and attempted a shriek, but her lungs couldn’t sustain the effort. Then, with a sudden burst, the avril left her nest and soared away from the mountain.

“Anakin, are you all right?” Tahiri called as she scrambled to the opening of the cave.

“I’m fine,” Anakin replied. “But Lyric’s in bad shape. We’ve got to get her out of here.”

Tahiri wrinkled her nose as the thick, dank smell of the cave struck her. Then she climbed into the nest and began to help Anakin lift Lyric.

“Leave me,” Lyric gasped. “It’s too late. Save yourselves. The avril will be back soon.”

“There is no try, only do,” Tahiri muttered under her breath as she hoisted one of Lyric’s arms over her shoulders. Anakin lifted the other one. As they dragged their friend from the avril’s nest, both Anakin and Tahiri saw the symbols carved in the purple rocks.

“This is the same place she was taken before,” Tahiri gasped in surprise.

“We’d better hurry,” Anakin said. They quickly left the cave and began the journey down the mountain. At times Lyric tried to take a step or two, but her efforts didn’t last long. Any movement made it too difficult for her to breathe. Finally, Anakin hoisted Lyric onto his back. He listened to her wheezing breaths in his ear as he carried her. Tahiri scrambled down the rocks in front of him, then helped him keep his balance as he climbed down. They were running out of time. Suddenly they heard the maddened scream of the avril overhead.

“Over here,” a boy’s voice called. Anakin saw the young Melodie he’d told to wait. With renewed energy, he moved quickly over to the boy. Several more Melodies were waiting, and they lifted Lyric off Anakin’s back and carried her through a small hole in the rocks. The avril landed by the hole and shrieked angrily. It was too small for her to follow her prey. Anakin, Tahiri, and the Melodies heard the creature scraping at the rocks with her talons. Her scrapes and cries faded into the distance as the group raced through a tunnel in the mountain. Anakin and Tahiri followed the Melodies. The tunnel within the purple mountain of Sistra wound deep, and just when Anakin began to fear that Lyric would run out of time before they reached the cove, the afternoon light began to pour over the group.