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"Excellent," replied Lola, stepping on the gas and whizzing right between Nettlebrand’s legs He struck out at the plane with both forepaws, but the weight of his ar saw Firedrake rise higher and higher until he landed on a snowy slope -- and then suddenly disappeared! As if he had simply been wiped off the face of the earth

"Rat!" cried the hoone He h "You can fly away now!"

"Fly away?" cried Lola "Just e’re having such fun? Not likely! Here goes!" And she brought the plane around in a wide arc and ?" cried the horrified Twigleg

Disbelievingly, Nettlebrand raised his head, narrowed his eyes, and stared at the whirring widget cory hornet

"Once more into the breach, dear friends, once more!" cried Lola "Full throttle ahead!"

She whirred past Nettlebrand, so close to his ar slid down between the seats with his hands over his eyes

"Yoohoo!" shouted the rat as she flew around Nettlebrand’s horns "This is better than surveying olden dragon whipped around He turned, he snapped, he snapped again and again and again -- and never got anything but e around Nettlebrand until he isting and turning in the water like a dancing bear "Whoo! Your old ht? Not as quick off the h the windshield "Bye-bye for now! Why not just lie back down in the mud and rust away, stupid?"

Then she pulled out of her circlingdidn’t knohether he was on his head or his feet

"Tantantara, tantantara, gone awaaay!" The rat tapped the instrument panel of her plane appreciatively "Well done,special"

Behind the put his hands over his ears But the aircraft was already well out of the monster’s reach

"Well, what about it, ho happily on the joystick "Think we’ve earned our breakfast?"

"Oh, yes!"He looked back at his oldthelare alone could blast therab Gravelbeard?

The hoain," he whispered, clenching his fists "I never, ever want to see hiain"

Even if he flew around Nettlebrand’s nose a hundred times, even if he escaped those teeth two hundred times, even if he spat on his ar would always, always be afraid of hi to land where we came down before," said Lola "Okay by you?"

"Okay by h "But then what? Hoe find the others?"