90% Human

by M. C. Berkhousen

  Something dark fell over my head. Arms came around my legs in a football tackle. I went down again, smashing into something sharp. Bodies piled on top of me, shoving me harder against the sharp point of a branch. Cloth covered my face, and somebody was on top of the cloth. I couldn’t breathe. I kicked and shoved, but I couldn’t get free. My back scraped against a rock. I tried to roll out from under them and hit my head on a log.

  “Pull up his shirt!” yelled Jake.

  “Leave him alone!” It was Jim’s voice. His words were muffled, as if someone had put a hand over his mouth. Scuffling noises added to the din. Something crashed into the dirt near me.

  “Shut up, Indian. Go ahead, pull it up!” yelled Jake. “I’m not lying. See for yourself.”

  “What’s going on here?” It was Austin’s voice.

  “Get lost, punk,” said Jake.

  “Oof!” Something heavy hit the ground.

  “I said let him go.” Austin’s voice was deadly calm.

  Someone swore, saying the F word.

  Thump! Whomp! Screech! Twigs and branches snapped around me. It sounded like three wrestling matches going on at the same time.

  Suddenly my arms and legs were free. A weight lifted from my back, and the cover was pulled from my face. I could breathe again. I could see, too. I shoved hair out of my eyes and looked around. Bodies littered the ground. Jake rolled over, moaning. Bill had a bloody lip. Matt was rubbing his head. Jerry was doubled up near a fallen log.

  Austin held out a hand. I took it and he pulled me up as if I weighed ten pounds. “You okay, Luke? Your head is bleeding again.”

  I felt my head. The bandage was wet. When I took my hand away, my fingers were covered with blood. “Great. I guess I’d better go see Miss Powell again and get a clean bandage.”

  “I’ll go with you,” said Austin.

  “Me too,” said Jim. He picked himself up from the ground and brushed dirt from his arms.

  “Are you going to tell the counselors?” asked Bill. He looked worried. “We’ll be in big trouble.”

  “That’s what you deserve,” said Austin.

  “No way!” said Matt. “We weren’t going to hurt him.”

  “We just wanted to see if he had feathers,” said Jerry.

  “That sounds intelligent. I can’t wait to hear what the director will say when you tell her that,” said Austin. “Or what the judge says when our parents sue you.” Leaving them behind, the three of us headed to the First Aid Office.

  Austin glanced at me as we walked. “What are you going to tell the nurse?” We stopped walking for a minute to get our stories straight.

  “I can’t tell her about the guys tackling me.” I winced as I tried to think. My head hurt and I felt a little dizzy. “She’ll want to have me checked over by the doctor. I have to avoid that.” I glanced at Jim. “You know why.”

  “Does he know about the feathers?” asked Austin.

  I stared at my brother. “You know?”

  Austin smiled. “I’ve always known. That’s why I insisted on coming to camp with you. I was afraid something like this would happen.”

  I blew out a long breath. My ribs were hurting. I didn’t tell Austin or Jim, but I’d hit the jagged end of that fallen tree when Jake knocked me to the ground. The hard, sharp edge of the wood had jabbed the space between my ribs. I hoped it hadn’t broken one of them. That would mean an X-ray, and a closer check by the doctor. I decided not to mention my sore ribs to the nurse.

  When we arrived at the First Aid Office, Megan had gone to lunch. Miss Powell gave me a washcloth and told me to wash my face and hands with soap and water. Then she cleaned the cut on my head and put fresh bandages on it. She made me lie down on the cot in the corner and said I had to stay there for a half hour.

  “I’m getting hungry,” said Austin. “Jim and I can go eat. Should we bring you something?”

  “I’m not hungry.” I closed my eyes and listened to the door closing behind them.

  My head hurt. My chest hurt where I’d hit the jagged edge of the tree. It hurt every time I took a deep breath. I had painful scrapes on my elbows and knees. Anger roiled up in me—anger at Jake and his friends. I was angry with Jake for bullying me and pinching me until I ached all over. I was furious with all of them for attacking me and knocking me down, blinding me with a blanket. I was angry with myself as well. I should have dealt with Jake differently, right from the start. I couldn’t report what he’d done because I didn’t want the nurse to check me and find the feathers. But I could have asked Austin for help. Or Jim. Or an adult who wasn’t connected with the camp. Like Gramps.

  When Austin and I were living as zoo animals, Gramps had helped us deal with a bully much worse than Jake—Dunn Nikowski. Dunn was a temporary night guard at the zoo. He used a cattle prod—a metal thing that uses electricity to stun whatever it touches—to show big animals that he was the boss. He turned it on me when I was a Komodo dragon. He used it on Austin too. I felt angry all over again just thinking about it.

  Jake reminded me of Dunn, though their faces didn’t look the same. But he stood the way Dunn stood, with his arms crossed and rocking back and forth on his heels. And he was a bully too, just like Dunn.

  It was time for a do-over. Gramps always told me that we couldn’t go back and make a brand new start, but we could start from now and make a brand new ending. Thanks to Austin, I had a chance for a new ending with the guys in my cabin. I wasn’t going to take any more abuse. If Jake touched me, I’d knock his hand away. I’d tell the counselor he had tried to pinch me again but I’d grabbed his hand and stopped him. If I said that, I wouldn’t have to be checked by Miss Powell. They’d call the police. That would be the end of Jake’s days at this camp.

  Making a plan made me feel better, but I still felt angry. Four guys had attacked me, all at once. Just thinking about it made me want to clobber them all. As a Komodo, I could deal with them. They wouldn’t be able to get away from me, because Komodo dragons can run twelve miles an hour, much faster than most humans. It wouldn’t do any good for them to dive into the water, because a Komodo can swim. Even climbing a tree wouldn’t help, unless they got up pretty high. The Komodo could stand on his hind legs and reach them. Maybe even climb a little. Just one little nip by the Komodo would give each guy enough venom to cause pain and require hospital treatment. The problem was, Komodo venom could be deadly. I really didn’t want to kill anyone.

  Maybe I could become an eagle instead. That would allow me to fly fast and attack. An eagle’s talons are sharp and can dig into a small animal and fly away with it. They can drag a big animal a short distance. That would work.

  My body began to quiver. My arms and legs trembled, and I felt the prick of scales beneath my skin. Nails stabbed at the inside of my fingers, and my hands itched to turn into claws. Or maybe talons. This wasn’t good. I needed to get out of here before Miss Powell noticed what was happening. I couldn’t allow myself to turn into an animal. I had to get control.

  “I’ve got to use the bathroom,” I said, rolling off the bunk.

  I left the First Aid Office and hurried to the bathhouse. My hands were shaking, and it felt like insects were crawling all over my skin. The creepy feeling usually meant I was about to change forms. I took a deep breath to calm myself and stop my animal nature from emerging. It took five breaths—a much longer time than usual—to settle myself down. That was probably because I was now fighting both the Komodo and the eagle forms to keep them from taking over my body.

  Thankfully, no one else was in the bathhouse. Leaning against the sink, I washed my hands and dried them with a paper towel. I wiped the water off my forearms and stopped short. The feathers had spread. Downy white feathers extended down the inside of both arms, all the way to my elbows. Glancing at my reflection, I blinked. Blinked again. Pale yellow eyes stared back at me!

  Chapter Five—Junior Lifeguard

  I’d been through this before. Last fall, after we came home from the zoo, my
eyes had turned sort of a golden-amber color. Like the Komodo, I could run fast and smell things that were far away. Though I looked human, I still had some Komodo traits.

  Now my eagle abilities were getting stronger. Maybe it was because I’d been using my eagle traits more. I liked using eagle traits. I could see things that were two miles away. Being able to catch Megan when she fell from the zoo’s water tower and helping to save her from becoming a cougar’s dinner made me feel like a hero. It felt great to help people. The problem was, doing those things caused me to become even more like a bird. Feathers had spread down to my elbows. I had pale yellow eyes like an eagle—which would be hard to hide. What else was going to happen? Was I going to start looking for a nest?

  As I left the bathhouse, the breeze blew gently through the trees over my head, rustling the leaves. I huffed out a long breath. I didn’t want to be a Komodo dragon or an eagle. I wanted to be human. If I wanted to be human, I had to stop relying on animal qualities. I had to use my human skills and traits before I forgot how.

  The giant bell outside the mess hall was clanging. That meant we were all supposed to gather there right away. I hurried to the cabin, sorted through my suitcase for a long-sleeved shirt, and pulled the sleeves down over the feathers. Taking sunglasses to cover my eyes, I hurried back to the mess hall.

  Jim and the other guys were already there. No one commented about my sunglasses. They probably thought I had two black eyes from their attack. They didn’t look too good either. Bill’s lip was swollen, and Matt had a bruise on his cheek.

  Mrs. Harris walked to the front of the room. The sheriff was with her. Everyone grew quiet.

  “Sheriff Danbury and his deputies have completed their search of the grounds,” said Mrs. Harris. “He’s going to tell you about it.”

  The sheriff cleared his throat. “I’m glad to tell you that we didn’t find any trace of a bear or a cougar.”

  “There were tracks,” said Levi. “We saw them. We saw the bear, too.”

  The sheriff nodded. “Yes, there were tracks. We followed them through the woods to the farm on the other side of the camp. We told the farmer about the tracks and that we hadn’t seen any bears or cougars. We told him to keep an eye out for these animals and call us if he saw anything.” He turned to Mrs. Harris. “We believe it’s safe for the campers to resume their normal activities. However, they should stay in groups. Don’t let any of them go into the woods alone.”

  Mrs. Harris thanked the sheriff and then addressed us. “Your parents have all been emailed, texted, or called about the possibility of these animals being on the grounds,” she said. “So far no parents have informed me that they are coming to get you early. Not everyone has answered yet, but I’m optimistic you’ll all be allowed to stay. I know you’re all looking forward to our overnight camping experience on Fish Island. It’s a beautiful place, and our campers always love to go there. If it isn’t raining, you’ll get to sleep outside.” Everyone cheered.

  Mrs. Harris continued. “Because you missed your hike today, we’ve scheduled extra swim, boating, riding, and craft sessions before supper. You may choose one activity. Check with your counselors to see if there’s space. There will be a maximum of twenty for the water sports.” After another round of laughing and cheering, the sheriff shook hands with Mrs. Harris and left. Levi followed him out the door, and I followed Levi.

  The sheriff stopped as we approached the cruiser.

  “There were cougar tracks, Sheriff,” I said. I didn’t mean to sound rude. I took a deep breath to calm myself. “You saw them yourself.”

  Levi rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m telling you, I saw the animals with my own eyes. What about the bear? You think we made that up, too?”

  The sheriff sighed. “No one said you made it up. The tracks prove the mountain lion was there.” He shook his head and spoke quietly. “Son, I don’t know what else to tell you. I’ve had men out scouring this area for the past twelve hours. We’ll keep looking, but whatever was here is gone. We know they have large territories. It could be far away by now. If you see it again, we’ll come back.”

  We watched the sheriff’s cruiser pull away. The bear was gone. I knew that for sure. But the cougar was a real animal. It had probably stayed out of the sheriff’s way, hiding in the trees under cover of night. I was glad it got away, but I felt bad for the cattle on the farms outside the camp’s borders. Sooner or later that cat was going to get a taste for a beef steak. Rare.

  Back at the cabin, the guys were changing into their swimsuits. None of them looked at me. I pulled my swimsuit and towel from the clothesline and headed to the bathhouse to change. I left my long-sleeved shirt and sunglasses on.

  Jim was waiting for me when I came out. “I put our name on the list for the canoes.”

  “Thanks.” It was great to have a friend like Jim. He had my back.

  We followed the long stairway down to the beach, stopping to turn over our tags at the landing. I got into a canoe and went to the front seat, as usual. Jim shoved the canoe into the water, stepping into it as it slid forward. We paddled out about thirty yards, giving other campers room to launch their canoes. Soon we were all in the water. The counselors had taken a canoe out as well.

  Jim and I paddled smoothly across the lake, taking our time. I loved the quiet. The only sounds were the light ripples of water and the distant hum of a plane somewhere above the clouds. Ahead of us, a fish leapt into the air and splashed back into the lake. Behind us, Jake and Bill turned in a circle. Jake wasn’t controlling the direction of the canoe very well. He had a big plastic bag over the dressing on his hand, which probably got in the way. The counselors pulled up next to them and spent a couple of minutes demonstrating how to steer.

  Then they pulled alongside our canoe, watching us carefully. After a few minutes Terry said, “Good work, guys.” As they paddled away, Jake sneered at us.

  We practiced for about a half hour, then pulled our canoe up onto the shore. Tracker Group A was waiting for their turn with the canoes. As soon as a canoe came in, the Warriors got out of it and Trackers got in. Jim and I stopped to watch for a few minutes. Megan and her buddy Louise took a canoe out about fifty yards. They were paddling slowly, trying to do the stroke correctly. Another canoe was churning through the water, heading directly toward them. There were two guys in the canoe. They looked like Jake and Bill.

  “That canoe is going way too fast,” said Jim.

  Jake and Bill were leaning forward, pushing the water with their paddles as though they were in some kind of race. They were heading straight for Megan’s canoe. If they didn’t slow down, they’d ram it broadside!

  Waving to the lifeguard and yelling, I ran out on the pier. Too late. Jake’s canoe slammed into the girls, tipping the canoe and dumping both girls into the water. Louise’s head came up first. Treading water, she brushed wet hair from her eyes and looked around.

  “Megan,” she cried. “Where are you?” But Megan did not appear.

  I grabbed a floating ring from a post. Before I could throw it, someone dove off the end of the pier and swam toward the overturned canoe. He swam fast, with strong, skillful strokes. The lifeguard grabbed a paddleboard and dove in also. He was several strokes behind the first swimmer.

  Megan’s head bobbed up out of the water. She flailed her arms wildly, but she wasn’t swimming. Then she sank under the water again. It looked as though she didn’t know how to swim! If someone didn’t save her she would drown!

  The two swimmers had reached the overturned canoe. One was the swimmer who dove off the pier first, and the other was the lifeguard, Kevin. They dove under the water near the canoe. We couldn’t see what they were doing. Everyone was very quiet, watching for them to come up again. After a minute Kevin and the other swimmer came up for air. I squinted, trying to see who the first swimmer was. Both of them took a deep breath and dove back under the water again. What were they doing? Why couldn’t they find Megan?

  My heart pounded as
I watched them. I felt the prick of scales under my skin. Komodos could swim. If I had to go Komodo to save Megan, I would. Jake and Bill dragged their canoe up onto the beach and began to walk away without a backward glance. I kept my eyes on the lake.

  The first swimmer dove under the overturned canoe. Time seemed to go very slowly as I watched helplessly from the pier. Louise had reached the shore. She climbed up onto the pier, and someone handed her a towel. She stood next to me, shivering and watching silently as the lifeguard and the other swimmer kept diving in the area around the canoe.

  Then the first diver came up, pulling Megan with him. Coughing and sputtering, she grabbed him around the neck in her panic. A voice, calm and clear, told her she was okay and he was going to swim her in to the shore. I recognized that voice. The swimmer who dove off the pier first was Austin!

  He started toward shore, one arm around Megan, doing the sidestroke. I couldn’t believe my eyes. He was swimming her in just the way we’d been learning in Junior Lifeguard class. The real lifeguard swam up to them and pulled Megan onto the paddleboard. Together they towed her in and came alongside the pier.

  “I think you can stand up, Megan.” Austin stood up to show her the water was at waist level. She tried to slide off the paddleboard and stand, but she was weak and unsteady. She was still coughing and her lips looked blue. The lifeguard slung an arm around her, and Austin supported her on the other side.

  “Good job, Austin,” said Kevin, as they walked Megan to the shore. She sat down on the sand where it met the pier. She was still shaking and coughing. Austin grabbed his towel and wrapped it around Megan’s shoulders.

  Jake and Bill were almost to the top of the hill. They hadn’t even stayed to see if anyone would rescue Megan. She could have drowned out there. They had caused the accident, and it didn’t even seem he cared.

  “Parma! Carlson!” yelled Kevin. “Get down here!” He turned to me. “Brockway, there’s a phone with my stuff on the tower. Would you get it, please?”