Race to the Sun

Mac wakes Nizhoni and is worried that something is wrong with the train, which is traveling vertically up a mountain. They’re also alone in the train car. They worry that Mr. Charles has done something to the train before Mr. Yazzie, whom Nizhoni stuffed in her backpack earlier, replies that he, not Mr. Charles, is responsible. This time, Mac and Davery can both see the talking toad.

Mr. Yazzie reports that, as descendants of Changing Woman, Mac and Nizhoni “have been gifted the powers of her sons, the Hero Twins” (118). He calls Nizhoni “Monsterslayer” and Mac “Born for Water,” admitting that they are not actually twins, but with only 10 months between them, they are close in age.

Mr. Yazzie recounts the story of Changing Woman creating the first four Diné clans. When monsters threatened the clans, she birthed Monsterslayer and Born for Water to protect them. The Hero Twins faced many trials but ultimately prevailed; Mr. Yazzie reports that this pattern has repeated throughout history whenever monsters have arisen and that Mac and Nizhoni are the latest iteration. Nizhoni feels nervous; she longs to be known for heroism, but this quest is more frightening than she imagined.