[ WP ] The most interesting use of the word 'vestigial '

Austin realized his thighs and calves were straining, his knees aching. He stood with a thorough exhale and then stretched. He had been crouched in the recesses of the alcove for some time, but just beyond the sun still beat down and the breeze refused to stir, as if it had only been a moment. He looked around, sheepishly, hoping no one had caught him in his reverie. It was n't quite fall yet so the tourists hadn ’ t fully descended on Lost Maples State Park to see the eponymous Bigtooth Maples shed their leaves in autumn-hued majesty. It certainly did n't feel like fall, but that would never stop the outdoor-oriented Texans from camping and hiking to their hearts ’ content. 
 
 But he was still alone. He turned back to the idol. It stood out as if the focus of a picture. As he crouched down again and gently hefted it in his right hand, he was sure that the idol exerted a weight that superseded its physical form. The stone-faced eagle had smooth eyes that glared straight ahead with a palpable force. It ’ s exquisitely detailed talons hung over the edge of the base of the figure. The long, straight tail feathers and the wings curled against the birds back seemed awkward. They made the eyes scream for the open air. 
 
 The idol exuded the vestigial energy of the apex predator. There was no doubt in Austin ’ s mind that the two eagles he had seen earlier in the day were somehow connected. He generally shied away from that kind of mystical nonsense, but there was an incongruous force about this thing. He knew that removing this image from its origin would have dire consequences. With only a moment ’ s rueful hesitation, he set the idol back where it had been. He felt the eagle ’ s glare on his back as he made his way back to the trail proper, and for as long as he remembered the encounter, he never could fully shake the feeling.
