Protect her . . .

     “I give you my pebble to take to her.  You must bestow upon her all that it has.  We will be with her.  Please protect her from all who would hurt her just as you have protected us.”
     Mal-Nai could not focus.  There was a blur in her vision and a loud ringing in her ears.  She was unable to determine the source and too confused to stand.  “What is going on?  My head hurts.  The room is spinning.  What is thing in here with me?”
     Finally, Mal-Nai could stand and something moving quickly about the room around her.  It would frequently hit her and knock her off her feet.  Mal-Nai moved to the corner for support.  As she sat firmly in the corner, she waited for the blur to come near again.  She reached, grabbed, and missed.  Once again, grabbed and missed.  Time and time, she tried and failed.  She decided to pull out her cloak and tried to set a trap.
     Mal-Nai closed her eyes and listened intently as it approached closer.  She lay quietly as it screeched nearer and then sprang into action to seize it.  She wrestled with it exhausting herself until she almost could not breathe.  Mal-Nai lay atop of it until it stopped squirming . . .