Screeching, he twisted in mid-air and came down short of Jalila, slamming onto the overturned cart. Jalila reversed the rifle in her grip and swung the butt against Nalo's skull. He twitched a few times before he stopped moving. But Jalila could see he was still breathing. Unfortunately, incapacitating him didn't solve all Jalila's problems. The pandemonium in the plaza continued. Jalila heard gunfire and screams of panic and pain from all directions. And in the midst of the madness, her two Vox allies lay bleeding on the pavement. Pushing through the torrent of fleeing Vox, Jalila hurried to her teammates and dropped to her knees between them. Yama was bruised and battered, but Jalila found a strong pulse. Folcrum, however, was in terrible shape. As Jalila watched, blood pumped from his gaping chest wound, and his eyes fluttered shut. Gently, Jalila stroked the soft silver fur of his brow.
