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I powered my tail and caught up.
Cassie.
macrons.>
The pill bug from hell! It
was on my morph. Probing me!
I yelled.
Tobias asked.
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hammerhead to the right and swam in a small
circle. Hovering without progressing.
Jake
asked.
The blood cells and miscellaneous blobs that
had been washing along beside us were still with
us, but no more joined them.
the stomach?> Ax asked calmly, almost conver-
sationally.
Cassie
answered.
We continued down the tunnel that was physiology taught in human schools?> Ax said.
Marco's vein. When we reached the branch Jake
is able to  >
had pointed out, we followed the bloodstream
into a wider tunnel. I said.
Bump.
The Helmacrons' voices were growing slightly
Tobias, knocking up against me.
louder.
out, you guys!>
Then, suddenly 
Dead end!
The vein just. . . stopped.
easiness^
We had stumbled into a fun house. Tunnels
opened all around us, in every direction. Above I bumped into Jake. Turned to the right,
swam in another tight circle.
the shark's head, below its belly. Each one seemed
to be a different size and shape. Some big enough Ax agreed.
for us to pass through. Some far too small. The shark sensed danger. Not fear. Sharks have
The current had also stopped. I turned the no understanding of fear. The shark was calm,
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confident. But it sensed some sort of change
in the liquid surrounding us and it wanted to get
ture of the molecules around us,> Ax said.
out.
Maybe this is how sharks feel swimming in
Look. The round blobs go into that tunnel, there.
polluted ocean waters. I don't know. The shark's
But the rod-shaped ones go up there.>
mind didn't offer any explanation. It just said:
Weird, but true. Some of the molecules were
Haul butt. Now.
lining up for the girls' bathroom; others, for the
I clamped down on the shark's mind. Now
boys'.
wasn't the time to panic.
I bumped up against Ax. I muttered.
Ax asked.
Turned to the right to swim out of his way.
I tuned into the shark's skin. But there was no
To the right.
pain. Just a dim sort of tingle that wasn't un-
Again.
pleasant. Nothing like the all-out agony of being
I said.
in the stomach's violent digestive juices.
particular tunnel.>
said Tobias.
Tobias interrupted.
Ax.
One right in front of me. It wasn't any particu-
lar shape or color. A fat molecule? A tiny bit of
The Gap,> Cassie said.
adrenaline? No way of knowing. And then . . .
I think I know where we are.>
I exclaimed.
As if a bomb had gone off inside, the glob
silently broke into a thousand pieces.
Ax asked.
Cassie said.
filters out impurities,> Cassie explained. As-
I twisted my hammerhead and turned in an-
suming the liver thinks we're impurities  and it
other tight, right-hand circle. Noted a rod-
must  it's pushing us into the colon.>
shaped thing a few inches off to my right. And,
Suddenly, the current felt stronger. Maybe I
then, suddenly, it was round and slightly green.
was just more aware of it.
Jake said.
we're going to be waste?>
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 Cassie confirmed.
Jake said.
Cassie said.
heart.> Ax, calmly stating the obvious as only Ax
send to the heart?>
can.
I said.
I agreed.
Cassie said.
I asked.
Cassie said.
About a dozen tunnels went up to the left
and up to the right. One tunnel seemed to go
straight up.
Ax said.
I
told him.
world now.>
Ax said.
Thump, thump.
And then . . .
Click! My brain made one of those sudden
leaps. Like two puzzle pieces falling together.
Thump, thump.
Thump, thump.
Louder. Coming from all directions at once.
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And I had no idea what was going on inside me.
Hours passed and all I heard from my friends
were occasional strange orders.
Don't sneeze.
Don't eat or drink anything.
I wanted to tell them to include me in their
thought-speak. Maybe. I mean, did I really want
to know what a group of morphing warriors and
egomaniacal lunatics were doing to my delicate
Marco internal tissues?
I contacted Mr. King. Had the Chee show up
for dinner as Jake, Rachel, and Cassie.
Dinner.
I told my dad I was sick.
When I finally got home from my pathetic at- Just after the sun went down, I fell asleep,
tempt at breaking and entering, I put on a long- sprawled across my bed. About an hour later I
sleeved sweatshirt. Couldn't let Dad see my wrist. woke up feeling weird. Sweaty. Wild. Angry.
Didn't want him to know I'd been trying to rob Angry . . . at the Helmacrons! It wasn't fair
some kid when his deranged dog took a chunk that I couldn't protect myself. Stupid freakin'...
out of me. The usual hang and chill routine was not go-
I dabbed some hydrogen peroxide on the punc- ing to happen. I was way too restless. Needed to
ture marks. Added a little Neosporin. Wished for do something. Got up and started to pace. Door
ibuprofen. My whole arm throbbed. to windows. Windows to door. Back. Forth.
But so what? And the anger continued to grow. Welled and
A little dog bite wasn't going to kill me. The surged and wouldn't be held in check by my
Helmacrons had that under control. usual habit of black humor, transforming tragedy
In a way, I welcomed the pain. It reminded into comedy. There wasn't one joke in me.
me I was alive. For now.
Maybe I just missed my audience.
The afternoon dragged on. Anyway, I was in an exceptionally foul mood.
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A soft knock at the door. It opened. My dad kitchen, nuked it until it was defrosted and warm.
stuck his head in. "Marco, hey, I thought I heard Then I got my bike out of the garage.
you moving around. How are you feeling?" I was going to get the camera.
"Urn, fine." So what if I couldn't morph? So what if my
Dad pursed his lips. Came in and put a hand friends couldn't help me? So what if Cujo had
against my cheek. "You're flushed. And you feel practically ripped my arm off?
a bit hot." That camera was mine.
I turned away. "I said I was fine!" The ratty-looking Chee was still on guard. That
"Okay, okay." He was taken aback by my re- meant that the camera, if not the kid, was still
inside.
action. "Well, if you're feeling better . . . Nora
and I have that dinner party. It's a work thing. If
For about half a second I wondered if I should
you don't need me to stay with you." ask for his help. Maybe he could throw a holo
I immediately saw the opportunity. "Go," I around me, make it easier to sneak into the
said soothingly. "I'm just going to rest. Read that apartment.
book for English."
Rejected the idea. It would probably violate
He probably didn't buy that last part, but he the Chee's code of nonviolence. What a joke.
headed for the door. I could do this alone.
"Okay," he said. "Well, I'll leave the number
The kid's apartment building looked even
on the refrigerator. Give us a call if you start to
more decrepit at night. But I felt no fear. I walked
feel worse."
straight over the fence and across the concrete
"I'll be fine," I said again, through suddenly lot to the fire escape. It was still hanging down
clenched teeth. the way I'd left it. I charged up.
Dad left. Cujo was waiting.
Ten minutes later I heard the car pull out of
"Rrrrrrr!" He growled deep in his throat when
the driveway. he saw me on the fire escape.
I waited another couple of minutes. Then I
Then he flung himself madly against the win-
went down to the basement. Rooted around in dow. Totally airborne. Toenails clicking on the
the freezer until I found a steak. Upstairs in the wooden sill. Drool flying. Teeth gleaming.
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I grabbed the bottom of the rickety window
and yanked it up about halfway.
"ArfARFARFARFARFARF!" Cujo's snapping
jaws were inches from my throat.
"Stuff it," I said, tossing the steak into the
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