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    Peter Carrot-top

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      Chapter 14

      Losing a Friend

      The two women began to duck and dodge the branches as

      Oscar ran and whipped through the trees. Jane and Samantha

      held on tight, because Oscar was not slowing down. Through

      the trees and over streams and hills, Oscar ran with power,

      trampling the dead trees and leaves that filled the ground.

      Jane noticed that all of her plants were dying, even the

      ones she'd tried to save. They cried out for her, but she

      could not stop, she yelled.

      "I promise I will be back to save you all, and

      everyone who is responsible for this will pay!"

      But this did nothing to heal the hurt all of the

      plants and trees were feeling; they just cried out for her

      more. Jane felt terrible inside; but Samantha reminded Jane

      that there was no way that they could stop right now, they

      must keep going, and she promised Jane that she would come

      back with her to heal her beloved plants.

      Right now, they were in a middle of a war. Jane

      quickly shied away from the cries of her plants, turning a

      blind eye in order to not feel the pain. Yet, out of the

      corner of her eye, she noticed that her plants and all the

      vegetation were sick, something was killing them very

      rapidly. Tears began to flow from her eyes. She quickly hid

      the tears from Samantha, but everyone knew she was hurting.

      Suddenly Oscar came to a stop as a huge tree fell in

      their way. The tree was dying and begged Jane for help.

      "Help us, master," they all cried.

      Jane and the others watched as the tree did its best

      to pick itself off of the ground. It kept crying out for

      Jane; this time she couldn't ignore it. She jumped off of

      Oscar and began to heal the tree with her touch. Suddenly

      the tree's limbs and roots began to flourish with color,

      and it picked itself up. Its bark began to get brown again

      and the leaves began to grow rapidly.

      "Oh! You have the green thumb all right," said Oscar,

      as the tree began to heal, and quickly embedded its roots

      into the ground.

      The tree began to pass along life to the next, then

      all of the trees began to rise from the death and dried up

      limbs they once had. They began to move wildly in the

      winds; praising the heavens for their quick return from

      death. Then they bowed to Jane, singing and praising her

      name. The trees, one by one, like a set of dominos, fell to

      their knees over and over again.

      Jane was filled with emotions, and asked the trees to

      get up as she wiped the tears from her eyes. One of the

      trees took its branch with a little leaf on it and wiped

      Jane's face ever so gently, letting her know that they did

      care. Oscar once again reminded Jane that they had to

      leave; the others were waiting and in need of their help.

      Jane immediately thought of a plan, and asked the

      trees to help her find her husband and friends. The trees

      put their leaves to the ground; they could sense the

      heartbeat of anyone. Immediately, they turned their

      branches and leaves in the direction they needed to go.

      "You must hurry," said the trees.

      Jane and Samantha immediately jumped on Oscar's back,

      and quickly took off down the path the trees had made for

      them. The trees began to wave and say goodbye as Jane and

      the others raced through the path. Jane looked back once or

      twice to make sure the trees were all right, and she

      noticed that the trees were covering up her path so that no

      one could track them. Jane was proud of her trees, not only

      was she able to save them, but they were able to save her.

      So, on their way they went; Oscar flying along, and Jane

      and Samantha holding on for dear life.

      "We must get there before nightfall," said Jane, as

      they passed the many splendors of the Ambassador Forest.

      They noticed that everything was now being infected,

      mountains and stone structures began to crumble right

      before their eyes; rivers and streams began to dry up as if

      someone was sucking them up with a straw.

      "Baja is dying," said Oscar, as he continued to race

      through the forest.

      "We must find that rhino plant," said Samantha.

      Further up the stream, dead fish and other sea

      creatures were gasping for air as there was no water.

      Animals were dropping from the sky; every size, every

      species, and all were fighting for life. As Oscar continued

      to run through the forest, Jane glanced something

      spectacular, an old ancient Mayan temple.

      There was an eerie feeling of evil coming from it, but

      the temple was so beautiful. Huge Mayan statues graced the

      entrance, with large rock monsters guarding the temple. At

      a closer look, Jane saw that people were being carried in

      by chains and ropes. She immediately told Oscar to stop and

      get a closer look. Samantha was not thrilled with this

      idea, but let Jane do as she wished.

      "Let's see if there is anyone we know," said Jane.

      Before the words could leave her mouth, her eyes were

      on Bella. "Well, well, well; if it's not the brave Bella."

      Samantha quickly crouched down behind a tree to get a

      better look; and sure enough, it was Bella. They were

      bringing some of the fighters that were with Sam and the

      others. From a far distance, Samantha spotted David, and

      gasped a deep breath of air.

      "Oh! No, they caught Sir David," shouted Samantha.

      Jane quickly put her hands over Samantha's mouth, as

      any little noise could carry far. It was as if Samantha's

      words floated on thin air. Suddenly, the words hits Bella's

      ears, and she immediately sent her rock dogs out to search.

      They were huge, with strong iron breastplates and helmets;

      all of their muscles were made of huge rocks. They were

      mean-looking and evil; their eyes were completely black and

      they constantly foamed at the mouth.

      "Go and bring me human flesh," said Bella.

      The rock dogs took off running.

      "Oh no! We must leave," said Jane, as the rock dogs

      came tearing through the forest, knocking down trees and

      vegetation.

      They had picked up on Jane and the other's scent, and

      they were now on the hunt. Jane and Samantha jumped on

      Oscar's back and they took off, but it was too late; they

      were now being chased by the huge rock dogs. Jane was so

      afraid, she closed her eyes from time to time, but every

      time she opened them, they would be right there, breathing

      down Oscar's back.

      Samantha pulled out her iron bow and arrows, and began

      to shoot the creatures as they came full force behind them.

      But the iron arrows did very little damage to the rock

      dogs; a little chip here and there did not slow these

      massive creatures down, and the more Samantha shot at them,

      the faster they came running.

      At this point, Oscar became very tired and began to

      slow down; he could no longer run, and he was running out

      of energy. Suddenly Oscar collapsed to his knees, throwing


      Jane and Samantha into the shrubs and trees. Oscar began to

      wrestle with the creatures, but he was outnumbered. The

      creatures ganged up on him and began to tear his flesh

      apart.

      "Don't worry about me, run!" said Oscar.

      Jane looked back with tears in her eyes, and began to

      take off running, leaving Oscar to fend for himself. He put

      up a good fight, until he saw that Jane and Samantha were

      far away; then he gave up, his body was savagely torn

      apart. His blood filled the ground, the symbols of Baja

      that were on Oscar died as he did, and the rock dogs

      savagely dragged his body back to their master. Jane and

      Samantha got away; they quickly ran through the forest

      avoiding all main pathways. As soon as they were well away

      from danger, Samantha began to blame Jane for stopping.

      "We were told not to stop," said Samantha.

      Jane could not do anything but hang her head low,

      sobbing. She was in distress; she had lost her best friend

      once again, and began to blame herself. Samantha had no

      pity; she began to walk along the path without Jane.

      Shortly afterwards, Jane followed. No one said a word; both

      ladies continued to walk the long pathway, intent on saving

      Sam and the others.

      "We must keep fighting, we can have a pity party

      later," said Samantha.

      But deep inside, Samantha was sad and hurt; after all,

      Oscar was part of the family. She stopped to get a drink of

      water from a stream that was running out of a tall mountain

      rock. Samantha washed her face as she let the tears roll

      down; she did not want Jane to see how hurt she was. After

      all, she was supposed to be a warrior.

      As Samantha went to drink the water from the stream

      she noticed an awful stench. "This water is poison!"

      Jane rushed over and took a quick sniff; the water was

      indeed poisoned, and that was the main reason all the

      plants, animals and vegetation were dying. The seven

      wizards had poisoned the waters with the same sickness as

      the wizard Cilus had. Samantha quickly wiped her face with

      the sleeves of her shirt to get the poisonous water off of

      her face.

      "We must keep going," said Jane.

      The two ladies got themselves together and began

      walking the long pathway. Oscar was no longer alive to move

      them fast through the forest, and he was no longer there to

      protect and warn them of danger. As they walked, there were

      death and destruction everywhere; plants were once again

      dying, vegetation had become poisoned, and the stench of

      death was in the air. Old tombs and ruins were completely

      destroyed, stone and rubble were scattered all over the

      ground, statues that once guarded the entrance to the

      secret forest were nothing more than dust, and destruction

      was as far as the eye could see.

      There was no living thing in sight. Jane held back her

      emotions; this was no time to stop and save any more plants

      and vegetation, because they would die of the poison in the

      Ambassador Forest. As Jane walked, she continually looked

      back, hoping to find any signs of life anywhere, but there

      was just death. Jane promised revenge for the plants of the

      forest; she promised that whoever was responsible for this

      would pay a great price.

      After hours of walking, Jane and Samantha were finally

      close to finding Sam and the others. Jane began to run

      ahead, awaiting the comfort and loving arms of her husband.

      Samantha quickly ran after her, warning her that this could

      be a trap. This time, Jane listen, slowly walking instead

      of running. Jane and Samantha checked out their

      surroundings, but could not find anyone. Jane feared the

      worst, thinking that Sam and the others had been captured

      like David and held in a prison camp.

      "This is the right spot, so where are they?" said

      Samantha.

      She held out a reflection glass in the sun, and the

      glass began to glitter in the sun's rays. Samantha sent out

      a code to anyone alive who knew how to send codes by the

      sun. At first, nothing happened; so the two ladies sat and

      waited. Then, through the dead leaves and vegetation, a

      code came back.

      "It's them, someone is alive," said Samantha to Jane.

      The two ladies began to run and hopped over the dried

      up vegetation, hoping to find anyone they had lost. Jane

      and Samantha kept running, as if they were running from

      someone. Their emotions got the best of them, and both

      ladies began to cry uncontrollable.

      From beneath the vegetation, out popped Sam and Red

      Fox with a few of the remaining fighters. Sam was glad to

      see his wife, and was happy that both ladies had made it

      out alive. There were no words, just emotions as the

      fighters reunited with Jane and Samantha. Sam held Jane in

      his arms for a long time, and Red Fox held onto Samantha,

      kissing and rubbing her cheeks. The two men apologized to

      the ladies for leaving them behind, but both women knew

      that there wasn't anything either of them could have done

      to save them from what had occurred.

      Nevertheless, Sam and Red Fox hurried the ladies out

      of the path, letting them know that the wizards had sent

      out hunting dogs. Jane began to cry, telling Sam and the

      other fighters that the hunting dogs had killed Oscar, and

      that David was captured by Bella and her imp friends. Sam's

      conscience began to bother him, and he apologized once

      again to his wife for not believing her about Bella, and

      because of his loyalty to her, he had caused many lives to

      be lost, and Baja to crumble. Jane turned around and

      comforted her husband, letting him know that all was not

      lost, and he would help in saving Baja.

      "We must continue to fight or forever be slaves of the

      wizards," said Jane.

      Red Fox, Sam and the remaining fighter agreed. Sam and

      Red Fox quickly took Jane and Samantha into a dune under

      the ground. The dune was huge, earthy-looking and felt soft

      and loamy. Its tunnels were long; from the scratches and

      carvings in the dune, Jane knew that they were in a large

      bird's nest. Large white and gold eggs were still lying in

      the nest, lifeless.

      As Jane and the others walked about ten feet in, there

      sat a large bird, slouched over, and foaming at the mouth.

      The bird was huge, and had to weight about two thousand

      pound. On its head was a large crown made out of pure gold

      and the finest silver. Just like most things in Baja, the

      crown glowed with codes and symbols. The feathers on the

      huge bird began to fall off, one by one causing a big cloud

      of dust.

      "It is dying," said Red Fox.

      He explained that the bird had been poisoned from the

      water, and no matter what they did, there was no way of

      saving any of the animals unless they got the rhino plant.

      Jane and Samantha let the others know that they had

      experienced this as well. Samantha rubbed the big bird's
    r />   head and whispered in its ear.

      "We will revenge your death."

      After this, the bird gave up and died; the huge crown

      and symbols stopped glowing. The bird turned into dust and

      blew away in the wind.

      "We must keep moving," said Red Fox to the others.

      He and Sam were pretty beaten up; they looked tired

      and worn out. Red Fox was missing patches of fur on his

      tail and face, Sam was badly cut and bruised; so were the

      other fighters. Yet, everyone vowed to move on and not to

      give up. They quickly moved the heavy bird's eyes to the

      entrance of the dune to block anyone from coming in, and

      then quickly began to move through the underground tunnel.

      Inside this magnificent tunnel was a long history of

      the protectors of Baja. Sam explained to Jane and Samantha

      that the bird's name was Ofus; he was one of the original

      founders and protectors of Baja, and he was thousands of

      years old. There were many like him, but they were

      scattered throughout the region. They were very hard to

      find, because they were the first birds to ever live

      underground in dunes.

      The cave had marvelous paintings of centuries ago; at

      times, the paintings seemed to come alive. They showed a

      great nation being destroyed and enslaved by the evil of

      the seven wizards. The pictures also showed how beautiful

      Baja once was; there were moons that came down and sat on

      the roads and farm lands. All the people of Baja were

      skilled in every level; there were machineries, pyramid

      builders, artists, teachers, wizards, and great beasts from

      many worlds away.

      Everyone lived in peace and harmony; until one day a

      great key was found by a little boy who showed it to his

      father, who was a code breaker. His father deciphered the

      codes and became the most powerful man alive, except he was

      evil. He began to rule with an iron fist. Turning people

      into slaves, he began to build statues and pyramids to his

      liking; instead of serving the people, he served himself.

      As Sam was telling the story, Jane got closer to the

      drawings and a picture seemed to move. She could not

      believe what she was seeing, and rubbed her eyes for a

      minute. She grabbed Samantha.

      "Look, doesn't this picture remind you of Mr. Stewart?"

      Samantha quickly ran her fingers over the picture.

      "Yes it does."

      Sam and Red Fox wanted to know what was going on. The

      two ladies explained that they were in the company of Mr.

      Stewart in the underground city, and he had an evil twin

      brother. Red Fox questioned Mr. Stewart's truthfulness.

      "I never trusted that man, from the moment I first

      laid eyes on him," said Red Fox.

      "Let's not jump to conclusions, let's wait on the

      truth," said Sam.

      "We don't have time to wait on the truth, many men

      have died!" said Samantha, as they continued to walk

      through the tunnel.

      The bird was of great importance, he had gold upon

      gold, and there were treasure chests and small rooms filled

      with gold and valuable gemstones. As they walked further

      through the tunnel, they came upon a surprise; there were

      three golden doors that glowed with the secret codes of

      Baja.

      "Where could these doors possibly lead us?" said Sam.

      "From the experiences we've had, I am not looking

      forward to it," said Jane.

      No one knew which door to open, or even to open a door

      at all. There were so many mysteries in Baja that did not

      need to be opened; so everyone was being careful. The

      fighters got ready and held up their few remaining weapons.

      Sam and the others took a deep breath and exhaled.

      Sam then quickly chose door number two. A bright light

      burst out of the door opening; then it swirled around the

      room like tornado winds. Everyone fell to the floor and up

      against the walls. The ball of light began to spin and make

      little white balls of light. They circled around the room,

      scanning everyone's faces; then they joined together and

      became one huge ball again.

      Suddenly the ball let of a huge bang and sucked Sam

      and the others into a new dimension. The boom was so loud

      that it could be heard for miles. The people in Baja also

      felt it, but brushed it off as just an old earthquake. Yet,

      the wiser and older citizens knew that it was something

      more, and fear came into their eyes. They began to gather

      up their grandchildren and closed all their stores. Many

      other citizens went on with their daily lives, as if

      nothing had happened. But unknown to the ignorant, there

      was plenty going on; a war between good and evil was taking

      place right under their noses.

      Back in the tunnel, there was something strange and

      magnificent going on. Sam and the others were in the big

      ball; the light was so bright that they had to close their

      eyes. Sam and the others could feel themselves tumbling

      down; going nowhere. Their eyes were tightly shut and their

      hearts were thumping in fear. They had no idea as to where

      this was leading them.

      One by one, they began to tumble down a long stem-like

      vegetation; the further down they went, the less bright the

      light became. They were now able to open their eyes, and

      when they did they got the shock of their lives; everything

      was green and lush. The trees had big red and silver apples

      the size of a wagon; the wind blew by tiny fairies that

      flew in swarms of at least a million.

      Everything seemed to be alive and prospering. After

      everyone had tumbled down the hole, they looked back and

      saw that they had slid down a huge, big old tree that had

      been around for centuries. The birds must have found a way

      here by digging. The tree stood about two hundred feet

      tall, massive in size, with moss and huge mushroom growing

      from its bark.

      "Where could we be?" asked one of the fighters.

      "I have no clue," said Sam. "People talk about many

      worlds in Baja, but many thought it was nothing more than

      myths of the old people."

      Before anyone moved, Sam made sure everyone was all

      right and accounted for.

      "Make sure we all stick together," said Red Fox.

      Samantha could see in her friends' eyes that they were

      scared and tired, especially Red Fox. He was hurting so

      badly, but there was nothing she could do. So, Samantha

      finally went up to Red Fox and told him to get in the back

      and she would lead the crew. There was no arguing with

      Samantha; once she made up her mind, she never turned back.

      So Red Fox and the others let her lead. The land was

      massive; Samantha had no idea where to go first. Everyone

      began to look over this immense land and see the huge roots

      that were connected to the tree.

      "These roots can lead anywhere," said Jane.

      Everyone nodded in agreement. The roots seemed to go

      in a million different directions, over and under the

      planet. As they walked, they
    could feel tremors coming from

      the ground; whatever it was, it was big, and coming their

      way. Samantha told everyone to stay close, and behind the

      tall grass and plants. As the team walked on, Jane noticed

      that the plants and vegetation were clinging to her. Some

      were singing, some were spitting out cotton seeds from

      their center, and one plant pulled off its petals and

      inside it was filled with fresh drinking water.

      Jane gracefully took the water and began to drink; it

      was refreshing, and she then passed it on to the others. It

      was the freshest water they had tasted in a while. Jane

      then took here green thumb and healed the plant where it

      had broken the petals off. The petals grew back instantly;

      then the plant began to sign, sending codes to the others.

      "It seems like they love you," said Sam as he hugged

      his wife.

      Jane was pleased to see that something was surviving

      and living well. Suddenly a magical pathway appeared, and a

      huge leaf dropped from the sky.

      "They want us to pile in," said Samantha.

      Everyone did; the leaf was big enough to hold them

      all. Once everyone was in, the plants began to blow on the

      leaf, sending Sam and the others flying down the magical

      pathway. It seemed like a wild ride, but the plants were

      taking them to their destination. The ride went on for a

      while, and then it suddenly stopped at the end of the

      pathway.

      The crew could still hear the loud tremors on the

      ground. Whatever it was, it was getting closer and closer.

      Jane and the others peaked from behind a huge flower. The

      flower came alive and pushed Jane and the others into the

      open.

      "Master, we have been waiting for you," said the

      flower. It sounded sad and depress. "The great war is

      coming and you have come to save us."

      Big tears dropped from the flower and splashed on Jane

      and the others. This flower was huge, like nothing Jane or

      the others had ever seen. It had a human face, but its

      entire body was a plant, with stems, roots and leaves. Its

      skin was pale white with rosy cheeks, and silver titanium

      hair the glittered in the sun. The plant was at least

      eighteen feet tall, long and slender like a snake. Jane

      could not believe her eyes; she stood and gazed upon this

      marvelous creature for several minutes.

      "Forgive me, but did I make you?" said Jane.

      "Of course you did, silly master," said the plant.

      It went on to remind Jane of how she formed them. When

      Jane was a little girl, she was brought to the elders as a

      gifted child. They put in front of Jane a rare plant that

      grew on certain children of Baja. When she touched the

      plant, it grew, consuming the children with it.

      "Oh, yes! I remember, your species was called the

      Naffaldorfs."

      Jane was amazed to see what her green thumb had done;

      for so many years she had blocked out this event. But this

      was a short meeting; the plant quickly moved itself back

      into the ground as the loud tremors got closer. When Jane

      turned around to question her plant, it was gone, totally

      vanished back into the earth, obviously something was

      coming. All the plants were afraid and began to disappear

      into the earth, leaving only a small ant hill dome.

      "Don't be afraid, whatever it is, we will help," said

      Jane.

      But the plants never stuck their heads out, knowing

      better of what was coming. As all the plants vanished

      underground, this left a better view of the land, and now

      that Jane and the others could see better, they noticed

      that something was sucking the land dry. The earth began to

      crack from the lack of water; there was no rainfall, and

      under the ground was the last source of water. Jane knew

      then why the plants wanted her here, but what was causing

      this was the same thing causing everything else, the

      seventh wizard Cilus.

      Once Jane and the others found the white rhino plant,

      its powers would heal the plants and also Cilus. This was a

      risk they had to be taken or everything would die. As

      Samantha led the way, she noticed a huge group of strange

      monsters were coming. They were about fifteen feet in

      height, muscular, and huge; their size alone would frighten

      anyone. They came in packs, all carrying white sacks, as if

      they were going into the fields to hunt and farm. There was

      no running from these huge creatures, and as they got

      closer, Jane noticed that they were also a type of

      Naffaldorfs with their human appearance, but their bodies

      were covered in plant and vegetation. They were a living,

      moving garden of plants and flowers. Jane and the others

      were speechless.

      "Let's try to communicate with them," said Sam.

      "That seems like a bad idea," said Red Fox as the

      creatures got closer.

      Not only did the creatures outnumber them, but their

      size alone would frighten the bravest men. Jane and the

      others waved to the creatures as they came forward. At

      first, Jane thought that the creatures might run them over,

      but they stopped. As Jane got a good look, she was amazed

      to see the beauty of these creatures; their eyes were pitch

      black, some had silver hair, and some had golden hair.

      Others wore the finest linens, while some clothing seemed

      to be ravaged and worn. Yet, through it all these were a

      beautiful species.

      As the leader of the creatures knelt down, with a loud

      voice, he said, "Master, our master has return."

      He shouted it back to the others, and then they all

      knelt down, praising Jane. She had no time to bask in the

      glory; she wanted to know what was going on. Sadly enough,

      the creatures told Jane that the water supply was running

      out, and the only way that they could survive was to eat

      their relative plants in the meadows. The creature had a

      sad look on his face as he told Jane the story. The plants

      and flowers in the meadows produced more water, and because

      of this, they were a great source of food to the creatures.

      Jane was hurt, but knew that they were only killing

      the plants in the meadows for survival, not out of evil or

      jealousy. That's why the plants in the meadows would bury

      themselves in the earth to hide from the creatures. The

      creature went on to tell Jane that it was never like this

      before, and that something was truly wrong. Baja was under

      attack, many of their people had die, and back in their

      village many were still dying. They were the gatherers; it

      was their responsibility to find water to keep their

      species alive.

      "Maybe I can heal them," said Jane.

      "But we need water," replied the creature.

      Jane explain to the creatures that the only way to

      stop the vast spread of drought was to find the white rhino

      plant.

      "Yes, of course, we know where it is," said the

      creature.

      Jane and the others were glad to hear that, but there


      was more; the creatures went on to tell Jane that the rhino

      plant was guarded by a satanic creature. No one had come

      back alive when trying to get that plant. For centuries

      now, many had tried, and failed.

      "Well we can't afford to fail," said Jane.

      The creatures were ordered by their master Jane to

      stay outside the meadows and wait for her return. They were

      told not to feed on their distance relatives in the

      meadows. Jane promised she would return with plenty of

      water. It was a warm statement, but Sam felt as if his wife

      had promised something she couldn't deliver. Yet, he never

      said a word; he went along with his wife's plan and

      supported her every step of the way.

      "How do we get there?" said Jane to the creatures.

      The creature then whistled up into the air, and an

      army of large wind hawks flew down. Their wingspan was long

      and massive, they had horns on their heads with a grip for

      holding on, and they were sable in color. From their outer

      appearance, these birds looked very frightening, but they

      were the gentlest creatures in the vast meadows of Baja.

      Jane and her fighters were frightened, but quickly

      learned that the creatures were very gentle, and they were

      their only means for flying up high in the air to get to

      the area of the rhino plant. As the hawks landed, they were

      well groomed and taken care of. They were strong and

      healthy creatures of the air, and they all landed in a

      synchronized order, all by rank.

      "Who is the leader who would guide us?" said one of

      the large birds.

      "I would," said Samantha.

      Without hesitation, a bird threw Samantha up on its

      back, and showed her off as the leader. Once the other

      birds recognized their leader, everyone else was loaded

      onto the hawks. With their large beaks, they picked up

      everyone remaining. Getting up on these huge creatures was

      very hard and uncomfortable. Once the hawks were matched

      with their riders, their backs sank down to take the form

      of the person riding them, making it more comfortable in

      flight.

      "Now that was cool," said Samantha.

      As the hawk fitted her to his back, Samantha and the

      others were then given lassos to tie around their bird's

      neck for a better grip. Now it was time for take off; up,

      up into the air one by one the birds took off, leaving

      nothing more than wind in their rider's face. The plants

      and leaves on the ground began to blow from the heavy wind

      that was propelled by the birds' wings.

      "Remember to keep your word," said Jane to the

      creatures.

      They promised not to harvest any more of the other

      plants in the meadows until she returned.

      "We will keep our word," said the leader of the

      creatures.

      As they watched Jane take off into the air, the hawks

      were moving so fast that all their riders could see was a

      puff of cloud every now and again. The riders held on

      tightly as the hawks flew through the air. Soon deep down

      below, Jane and the others could hear a loud chanting; then

      there was a loud roaring.

      "We are here," said the hawk to Samantha.

      The leader of the hawks told the others that this was

      as far as they could go without being spotted by the manta

      rays of the air.

      "What are the manta rays?" said Jane.

      The hawk explained that there were huge black flying

      manta rays; they covered the skies in blackness, feeding on

      anything in the air. They were fast, and their wings and

      devil's tails helped propel them in the air. They couldn't

      touch the ground because they had no way of taking off; so

      if they were to come down low, Samantha and the others

      should pull them to the ground.

      The hawk also told Samantha that the chanting was from

      the talking stones, the stones worshiped the guardian of

      the rhino plant, and they would sound an alarm once they

      spotted an intruder. These stones would be easy to spot by

      their red glowing symbols.

      "Whatever you do, run when you come in contact with

      the stones," said the hawk.

      Everyone was a little tense, not knowing what to

      expect. The hawk reminded Jane and the others that they

      would be waiting right here for their return, if no harm or

      danger befell them. They also let Samantha and the others

      know that, since the hawks were the only ones that could

      get here, they must protect their lives, because Baja would

      need someone to retrieve the plant, if something happened

      to Samantha and the others. They nodded in agreement, and

      off they went into a dark and unknown forest, wondering if

      they would ever return to the land they loved.

     
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