Some Serious Focus

It isn’t just the animals doing all the work this summer. The kids are doing whatever they can to help on these risky missions and as time goes by, they find themselves getting better and better at it. In this scene, Bree is making use of a special talent of hers to find one of those ever elusive keystones.

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"Ughh...they’re everywhere!" shouted Shiloh. He tried swatting at the purple beetles, but they kept zipping by from every direction. The Haetae didn’t seem to mind. She kept leaping into the air, trying to catch one of them in her mouth. "How are we supposed to catch just one?"

"It has to be a specific one," said Sophie. She was desperately trying to hold on to the Lightning Bird who struggled against her hold on him. "And stop complaining. At least you don’t have to cuddle the flying bug zapper."

"Shhhh," prompted Bree.

"People standing around doing nothing don’t get to shush," remarked Sophie. "Do something already!"

"I am. Do you not see the game face? There is some serious focus going on here." Bree was carefully scanning the area, watching for that one beetle that was just a little bit different. The Jaculus was curled up around her waist, head resting on Bree’s shoulder.

"Anytime, Bree," said Shiloh. "I’m getting–"

"There!" An arm shot out, pointing at one of the many beetles zooming around them. "Fetch, Jaculus!" On command, the snake extended her wings and took off. Ignoring all others, the Jaculus kept after her target, a lone beetle with noticeably sparkly wings.

"Alright! Way to–" A stray shock from the Lightning Bird startled Sophie. "Good work, Bree, but you!" She glared down at the bird in her arms. "Knock it off. Sheesh!"

Jaclus and Gagana

Sometimes the kids need some airborne help and that’s where the Jaculus and the Gagana come in handy. These two fliers have proven invaluable on a number of missions even though both animals occasionally choose not to listen to their human friends.

The Gagana is a large, eagle-like bird spoken of in Russian legends. Said to have lived on Bunyan Island, the Gagana possesses an iron beak and copper claws, both of which can be pretty destructive when he puts his mind to it. Something of a temperamental bird, the Gagana is prone to lashing out and acting extremely aggressive against anything he views as a threat. He has an infuriating habit of using hard surfaces as a scratching post (such as fences and automobiles). In Bree’s mind, however, the biggest problem is Gagana’s constant refusal to crack nuts open for her; "That beak was made for it!"

From Arabian folklore, the Jaculus was usually found hiding in trees in order to ambush unsuspecting prey with a sudden dive attack. Possessing large, leathery wings on her back, this snake was an agile and quick flier able to keep up with just about any bird in the sky. She seems like a pretty lazy animal, but that’s usually just her way of conserving energy (she is cold-blooded, after all). The Jaculus can usually be found curled up somewhere warm and on missions, has a tendency to wrap around one of the kids if it’s a little too cold for her.