Ekay gathers his belongings in preparation for his early departure. He offers his gratitude to the tribe, which proves to be a rather emotional farewell. The sergals reply with mutual thanks, with even Little Fuzzball offering some “words” of his own!

However, before the two agudners can even take a single step out of the village, Pekk undergoes yet another mysterious rapid growth spurt. His height now equals his older brother’s, and he has sprouted a second horn as well.

Editor’s note: some fans have asked about what the normal growth rate of agudner children is. While sergals are known to grow and mature the fastest of the three Eltus races, agudners experience slower growth and development. Thus, Pekk’s bizarre growths spurts are very much abnormal.