It's that time again! Yes, the next chapter of Far Away Home is ready and published. I hope you all like it, and choose to comment for me!
Caustizer
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Part XII: Sky’s Trial (A)The sky was lit up by the crystal shine of a crescent moon as the colours of the landscape dulled to accommodate the passage of the night. Crickets tittered their usual routine like a natural symphony and the tropical grasses fluttered from the light passage of cool winds. The trees thinned at the south end of the Lush Valley, eventually disappearing altogether in the rain deprived ëDry Gorge’ leaving a place of barren but habitable land where no traveller would wish to stay for too long.
Things had settled all into place for Littlefoot and his friends, and looking back the longneck was grateful for it. The fires in the Lush Valley eventually burned themselves out, leaving the inhabitants to carry on with their lives. The entire group of them had returned including Doc, and since the word about his deed had already spread around a heroes welcome accompanied them wherever they went.
Sky and the other two wingtails had wisely taken a different course to resolve what his blue friend had described as ërecent family issues’. Littlefoot assumed it had something to do with that other black wingtail – ëGlide’ was it? – adjusting to not trying to kill them anymore. Wingtails were such strange creatures for that… keeping secrets and lying and holding grudges when there was really no need for it. The leaf eaters in the Great Valley had learned to forgive and forget for the most part, so it wasn’t something he understood too well.
“Goodbye Doc!” shouted Ducky as she waved at the longneck and his family just prior to their departure.
“We’ll see you soon,” added Littlefoot with a smile.
“Stay safe kid,” replied Doc roughly, turning his head towards Dara and his daughter as if he expected they had something to add.
“It’s been fun Littlefoot… my my it has,” commented Dara with a homely nod.
“Bye,” blurted her daughter awkwardly, since she didn’t really know any of them that well.
And then Littlefoot, Ducky, Ali, Petrie and Spike all made on their way out of the Lush Valley. They were in no great rush, since Sky hadn’t wanted to meet up with them again until the next morning. Casual conversation covered the whole trip, with Petrie and Ducky talking about things they were and weren’t afraid of, followed by why Spike eats so much, and then why sharpteeth have such sharp teeth and… by then Littlefoot had stopped listening. There was something odd about Ali’s expression… like there had been a big glob of food in her mouth for the past hour and a half.
“Ali, are you alright?” questioned the Longneck with a bit of concern as he walked beside her.
She didn’t answer, but instead nodded enthusiastically. Strange… maybe she was hiding something? Whatever it was it must be important for her to keep her mouth shut over it.
“Okay,” Littlefoot stated, before carrying on as usual.
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As the Great Circle’s light just crept over the horizon of the following day, Littlefoot arose from his sleeping place next to Ali. Ducky was laying with her head on a rock next to Spike, and Petrie was sprawled out on his back like a massive dusty leaf, yet there was definitely someone who was missing. Cera had always contributed to the group in her own way, and now that she had been gone for so long it was strange that he was growing to miss her now of all times. Silently, the longneck wondered what had become of the other half of the gang… Cera, Ruby, and Chomper. With Ruby’s knowledge of the mysterious beyond and Chomper’s super sense of smell, they had likely already made it back home. Hopefully they would be waiting for them when they got back.
A harsh flapping of wings sounded in the air nearby followed by a creaking groan from a set of branches as a heavy flyer set down upon them. Littlefoot looked upwards to see who it was, and was surprised to see not the luminesant blue of Sky’s feathers but the dark black of his now brother-in-law Glide. The longneck took a step back in caution, but the black wingtail wasn’t even looking at him. The piercing glare of his eyes was pointed upwards on an angle, staring off into the distance.
Following his gaze, Littlefoot soon discovered a magnificent show taking place in the air. Sky and his new mate Star flew together in an airborne dance that he had never seen any other flyer replicate… even during the Great Day of the Flyers in the Great Valley. They looped together, holding hands for a moment before parting and banking away. It was so exhilarating watching them perform, he felt bad about how little he had actually done to show Ali how he felt. Only one embarrassing failed attempt and a collection of red cheeked moments was what he could recall… it was a good thing she wasn’t awake to see this!
Up in the trees Glide watched them lock arms and twirl in the sky, their tails blowing majestically behind them, and growled. The longneck below noticed the gesture, and decided to speak to him about it.
“Why do you hate him so much?” Littlefoot asked thoughtfully, “Sky has been a loyal friend to us for the whole way since we left the Great Valley, and I’m sure he will be hers too.”
“Hah,” snorted the black wingtail, “this matter is beyond your limited understanding land walker. I’ve been like a father to her since our parents left and now she does
this…”
Littlefoot extended his neck all the way up as high as he could, and it was just tall enough to reach the height of the branch Glide was sitting on. His advantage of looking down lost the black wingtail pouted and crossed his arms in disregard.
“I lost my parents too when I was young,” commented the longneck with sadness, “It’s… an awful thing, but something good came of it. My friends and I would never have been so close if it wasn’t for my mom-”
Littlefoot stopped there… he really didn’t want to talk about it any farther. She was gone, and he had long accepted that. Her, and his dad too. There were a few moments of silence as the two of them watched the wingtails conclude their lovely dance and head towards the ground.
“Friends aren’t the same as family,” replied Glide empathetically, “when things get tough you can’t trust any of them… least of all
him…”
“Look at it this way,” replied Littlefoot hesitantly but maturely, “at least they’re both happy right?”
Glide didn’t look too happy about it at all.
“You’re insufferable,” the black wingtail replied with distain, “…just like that runner.”
The longneck’s senses pricked as he caught the last part.
“Runner?” inquired Littlefoot, “who are you talking about?”
Glide glanced up towards his sister and her new love, noting that they were descending fast and would be here in moments. Fortunately he wouldn’t have to continue this useless conversation any longer then a minute or so.
“Ruby, Chompy, and… erm… the threehorn,” answered the wingtail without enthusiasm, “plus the other two… I can’t remember anything about them besides how much they annoyed me.”
Sky swooped in and landed on the nearest branch he could find wide enough to accommodate his new best friend. Star hung back for a moment, and once he was settled landed next to him. Glide and Littlefoot promptly cut off their conversation at the arrival of the newcomers. The rest of the gang had awoken as well, and were going through their usual morning routines of stretching, eating (Spike), or in the case of Ali rejoining Littlefoot’s side. Clutching his ribs, Sky spoke up.
“Perhaps I shouldn’t be exerting myself so much just after such severe injuries,” the blue wingtail commented with a gasp of pain as he felt across a rib that was surely broken, “…my dance was absolutely awful.”
“You did just fine,” commented Star with sincerity, “I haven’t felt this good in a long time Sky.”
Briefly, they touched noses. Glide notably flinched.
“Hey Sky…” called Littlefoot, “guess what I found out… your brother says he knows where Ruby, Chomper and Cera are!”
“We are not brothers land walker!” hissed Glide suddenly, “nor shall we ever be.”
Sky looked a bit uncomfortable and shifted his gaze somewhere else. Star on the other wing glared venomously at the black wingtail. She had been pushed around by him for all of her life, and she wasn’t going to take it anymore. He had promised he wouldn’t fight with Sky anymore – at least physically – but clearly he wasn’t even trying to make things work. This wasn’t going to be an easy relationship.
Ducky cleared her throat, and it was loud enough to interrupt the proceedings and attract everyone’s attention.
“I think Ali has something she wants to say,” commented the swimmer maturely, gesturing towards the longneck.
Littlefoot was slightly surprised as she took a silent step forward. What was she going to say? Did it have something to do with him? Did her and Ducky plan something secret? His question was soon answered as the female longneck stopped in front of Sky, and dropped something out of her mouth. Judging by the dull ring it made when it hit the ground, Littlefoot knew exactly what it was.
“I’ve been thinking a lot about what to get you for your Star Day Sky,” Ali started with a hint of shyness, “and after what’s happened I almost forgot about it. It was very hard for us to think of something a wingtail might like, since for all the time we have spent together we still don’t know too much about you.”
Sky looked genuinely surprised but composed, and nodded at the statement for her to continue. Star looked at him knowingly, but otherwise did not interrupt.
“So here it is,” Ali finished, “I hope you like it.”
The female longneck picked up the Occular carefully with her teeth, and brought her long neck up to where Sky was perched. Cautiously the blue wingtail removed it with wide eyes, before cleaning it off eagerly with his feathers. Satisfied, he slipped it underneath his wing where it was safe.
“I really don’t know what to say,” said Sky with gratitude, and he spread his wings wide, “I am really, truly thankful you found it for me. You all have my eternal friendship.”
“Hooray!” called out Petrie, “Happy Star Day!”
Sky looked happily upon the gang as they celebrated his triumph. It was a little bit late in coming… but then late was always better than never.
“I don’t understand,” inquired Star, “wasn’t your Star Day seasons ago?”
“No,” replied Sky smugly as he took her hand with his, “with you it’s every day.”
It took a moment for her to get the pun, but when she did the scarlet wingtail started laughing. Soon the two of them were both laughing together, and everyone seemed to be having a good time.
Glide looked on without amusement. That wasn’t even that funny.
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Later that day night time crept over the waters of the Abyss Lake. The surface was completely still, mostly due to the lack of wind. Where there usually would be silent, motionless shoreline there was a beehive of activity in the Feral Forest. Wingtails flew above while Runners walked below, and in some places they even lingered together conversing about the big fight and about how brilliant it had been. A few did not share in the mood, the hatred of the other kind keeping them apart and distrustful. They mostly kept to small groups in the trees and on the ground, socializing with one another if at all.
Perhaps the greatest attraction of all was the latest confection of Aizon’s Creators – fire burned water swimmers! The blaze from the previous few days set by the Grand Creator had been maintained religiously by his kin and carried by the way of burning sticks to light a fire anew for all to see. Many of both Runner and Wingtail heritage had never seen real fire before this close… not counting the recent volcanic eruption far to the north… and gazed into the flickering coals with a mixture of fear and wonder. Ruby and her new best friend were not amongst them.
The two runners had made the most of the entire day together, exploring as much of the forest as they could. Since this territory was usually off limits to runners, it was a remarkable chance to see something new. Cera had declined to go with them, insisting she wanted to ësort things out’ with a few wingtails that had wronged her. Ruby supposed it was those two kidnappers that had taken her away, and wished her luck.
“You run very fast,” commented Swiftrunner as he walked with her through the crowds on the forest floor, “and…you come back to save me.”
Ruby grinned at the praise… but she didn’t feel that heroic. The fastrunner had only did what she thought needed to be done. If it had been her that tripped, she knew he would’ve come back for her too.
“Get out of the way.. oof,” somebody familiar called out over a jostling group of runners, “now how is a spikemouth like me supposed to move with it being so crowded?”
Swiftrunner and Ruby turned towards the source of the noise, and sure enough Siak came hobbling through with a few other familiar faces in tow.
“I’ll say it’s like a feeding frenzy going on down here,” commented Gentry, “I only hope there’s an eggshell or two left when they’re all done.”
Siak shot him a dire look.
“Speak with care,” she chided, “there’s lots of wingtails around and if you think the runners were mean about their eggs you don’t know the half of it.”
Ruby was listening in, but suddenly she felt her friend tugging at her shoulder.
“You run away… she be very mad… we go now,” insisted Swiftwalker, his expression showing that he was keen to help Ruby avoid the wraith of the spikemouth.
The warning was too late. Turning up from her little discussion with the Eggstealer, Siak spotted the two of them standing together.
“Well,” called out Siak with indignation, “…have I got a bone to pick with you.”
The spikemouth walked over to them, Gentry following silently behind her. She got to where she was right in front of the two runners, and put her claws on her hips. Ruby didn’t say anything, but looked slightly towards the ground in shame.
“What were you thinking running away like that? You could have been hurt or eaten!” lectured the Spikemouth, adding a click of her teeth for emphasis.
“I’m sorry,” apologised Ruby, “but I just had to make sure Swifty was alright, just so I could be sure I could see him again.”
“And she run real fast,” added Swiftwalker positively, “she save me from sharptooth.”
“That still doesn’t make what you did right,” continued Siak, “I’ve been worried sick about you and that little Chomper.”
“Chomper?” asked Ruby with alarm, “but he didn’t come with me at all…”
“Of course he did,” replied Siak matter of factly, “and rest assured it would’ve been on my back if anything had happened to either of you.”
“But yet such a dire eventuality did not occur,” interjected a familiar wingtail from the trees above, “it is my view that so long as one remains in the land of the living, the misfortune was not great enough for worry.”
Aizon fluttered down silently like a shadow of the night, joining the conversation. Many others who were also within the general area stopped what they were doing and gasped with awe. The navy blue wingtail had gone from silently admired to a legend overnight, and from what Ruby had heard that day he was being constantly hounded by admirers and simple folk that wished him to bestow upon them his ëinfinite’ wisdom.
“Hah, I was wondering when you would finally decide to show your face to me again,” blurted Siak shifting her anger, “I could have sworn after you left us and didn’t come back you were gone for good.”
“Please,” assured the wingtail softly as he pressed his hands together, “now is not the appropriate time to discuss such past matters.”
“I agree… but I can at least demand an explanation as to why you just up and left.
Aizon sighed, looking down briefly while he rubbed off his glasses with one wing.
“…the time of which my assistance was needed came to an end.”
Siak looked incensed by the comment and was about to snap something back when Ruby interrupted.
“Sorry, but what are you two talking about?” the runner asked with curiosity.
“I can see this topic must be resolved before we move on,” answered Aizon with tact, “perhaps you should start my fair and caring friend.”
Siak blushed a bit at the comment while maintaining the mask of her anger, and turned towards the two runners.
“I guess I’ll start with the favour I owed him. After Mais… went on his way I was heartbroken and lost. Given that his children were on the way, I didn’t know how I was to feed them I mean I couldn’t sit on the nest and hunt at the same time… that’s when I met Aizon.”
“Indeed,” continued the navy wingtail, “I offered to provide a safe place for her to nest in return for a hand in raising her young. At the time my interest in parenting had been tweaked by… ah… other concurrent events in my life.”
“And then you just up and left one day.”
“Your children had grown into young adults and were prepared to make the rest of life’s journey on their own. My assistance was no longer needed. Perhaps you blame me for their departure?”
Siak suddenly looked guilty, and turned away. A wingtail came diving through the forest, speeding through the trees at a rate that would have seemed dangerous to a flightless observer.
“Everyone, Sky has returned! The traitor has come back… he flies among us once again!”
The place turned into a chaotic swarm as wingtails took to the air in vengeance. Little had escaped from the musings of the Council of Elders on the subject of Sky, but nasty rumours had been circulating for the past season that the blue wingtail was responsible for the sharptooth attack. It was nonsense, but then not all wingtails were as smart as Aizon to dismiss such gossip.
“Pardon my sudden exit,” began the navy blue wingtail as he extended his wings, “but I’m afraid another matter requires my immediate attention.”
With Aizon’s departure the forest around the gang became a lot quieter and empty. Soon only Siak, Ruby, Swiftwalker, and Gentry remained.
“Hmm, we had best stay as far away from this one as we can,” commented Siak with concern, “this ëSky’ sounds like a nasty fellow from all the talk that’s been blowing around.”
Ruby shifted uncomfortably. She remembered her encounter with the wingtail a long time back, and how hateful he was towards her. It certainly wasn’t a stretch for her to imagine him being hated by his own kind, but as the runner thought about it more an idea came to her.
“Wait,” insisted Ruby, “I know him.”
“You do!?!” uttered Siak in surprise, “how girl?”
Swiftwalker switched his attention away from how he and Ruby could make a quick getaway to the conversation at hand, and at the same time Gentry also turned his head down from the trees above (he had been secretly looking for unguarded nests).
“We left the Great Valley together a long time ago,” explained Ruby, “Chomper, Cera and I as well as some others you wouldn’t know: Littlefoot, Ducky, Ali, Petrie and Spike.”
“…and what happened? How were you separated?”
“Well,” started Ruby nervously, not knowing where to start, “Sky wouldn’t talk to me because I am a Runner. Cera confronted him about it, and he didn’t apologise. Soon after that we just… parted ways.”
“You mean to tell me that stuffy wingtail wouldn’t talk to you because of what you looked like?” fumed Siak, “The nerve!”
Swiftwalker nodded his head in agreement. He wouldn’t have let anyone stick up their nose at his friend if he had been there.
“Come on,” insisted Siak as she grabbed Ruby’s arm and pulled her on, “let’s go give him a talking to before the others get to him.”
“But…but… this isn’t a good idea,” resisted Ruby, “wait, we don’t have to do this.”
“Oh yes we do.”
The plains runner could see there was no hope in trying to convince the spikemouth otherwise, so reluctantly she gave in and soon they were off again to right another injustice.
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Sky, Star and Glide flew in a triangular formation as they entered the Feral Forest. The flight should have been triumphant, but unfortunately the circumstances prevented it from being so. Sky felt uplifted as he flew on the left side of the wing next to Star. He felt back at home here, and even after such a long time away the memories came flooding back like he had only left yesterday. There was the clearing where he had his first class, his former family tree (now occupied by another family of wingtails), and even the place next to the lake where he first met Star. If this was the positive side of his return, the negative soon became quite apparent.
Word of his presence spread like wildfire, and soon a flock of wingtails were tailing them. Some called out insults and profanities, while others remained silent and simply looked on in amazement. A few times one tried to approach him, but an aggressive growl and a threatening swipe of Glide’s foot claws warded them away. The mob brought back an unpleasant recollection of being nearly attacked by Eybron’s wingtails, but another more important thought quickly suppressed it.
“Where are we going Star?” Sky asked with uncertainty, “I thought we were headed to the Elders’ Tree?”
The scarlet wingtail’s face was a mask of determination and anticipation when she turned to him.
“We’re going home. My aunt and uncle are waiting for us at the family tree.”
“But…” began Sky.
“No buts,” interjected Star with a smile, “there is someone you need to meet.”
The blue wingtail had a collection of questions come to mind but he decided to just trust his love. He could only hope that Star’s family would accept him easier than Glide did.
…
Star was the first to enter the large tree by the edge of the forest, tucking in her wings and swooping inside through the leaves. Sky was next, nearly clipping the edges of a branch with his wingtips. It had been so long since he had last entered a wingtail dwelling, he was a bit rusty. Landing on a limb inside, he noticed where Star had hopped up above to a different level and leaped up to follow her. A brief rustling sound informed him that Glide was on his tail.
“Are you sure we should be staying here?” asked Sky with concern as he shifted until he was roosting right next to her, “because I don’t think it’s completely safe for us even with the flying sharptooth covering our backs.”
Glide hopped up onto the branch late enough to not hear Sky’s gibe, and as he settled on a different branch he looked on with a neutral expression. The black wingtail had promised not to fight with him, but maybe it wasn’t a good idea to push it even in good humour.
“Shhh!” Star insisted, putting a finger to her mouth.
Sky went silent as she asked him to, and after a few moments a brownish-red wingtail emerged from a hallow within the tree. She looked like she was quite venerable, and he recognized her from a long time ago as Star’s Aunt Fliela. A small, feathery object was being carried in her arms and wrapped by her leathery wings. Coming into a beam of light Sky suddenly made out a pair of closed eyes and a small wing. It was a hatchling!
Fliela turned towards him and looked up and down Sky from his feet to the tip of his nose. Surprisingly, she said nothing and turned to Star with a smile on her face. While her mate and her brother looked on Star touched noses with her aunt in recognition, and the hatchling was handed between them right into the scarlet wingtail’s hands. Startled at the sudden loss of warmth, the tiny wingtail cried out. Smoothly Star ran her fingers through its dark blue feathers in a motherly fashion.
“Congratulations,” Sky said to Aunt Fliela with courtesy.
Oddly, she smiled back and nodded towards her niece.
“I should be the one congratulating you.”
As the realization of what she meant reverberated through him, Sky broke a cold sweat. Was it actually possible? Could it be?
Star laughed and turned towards him, the hatchling cooing softly in his mother’s embrace.
“No silly,” she corrected, “…he’s ours.”
Sky gasped, the sharp intake of breath coming out like a muted squawk. He was a dad! This is his son! The joy of the event was overwhelming. He hadn’t expected it to happen this soon, if ever. His first instinct was to leap forward and embrace his mate with all his energy, but doing so would endanger the baby.
The wingling suddenly opened his eyes. The youngster looked around slowly and without direction like he had no idea where he was or what was going on. What was that sound? Following his first instincts, the dark blue wingling uttered a sound of his own… a perfect copy of Sky’s gasp.
It was hard to tell who was more shocked - Sky or Star - when their son squawked a sound that was a flawless imitation of one of their own. How did he do that? Did he have a hidden talent that suddenly revealed itself?
“Oh I’m so proud of you!” stated Star as she hugged him close to her body. The hatchling seemed to enjoy the warmth.
“I…don’t know what to say,” added Sky as his mouth just started to work again.
Star rubbed her nose against the top of the hatchling’s head affectionately as he appeared to go back to sleep.
“He just hatched this morning,” stated Aunt Fliela with pride, “I’ve been sitting on him day and night for you Star. He was quite the feisty one knocking around inside the shell, I was surprised he didn’t come out sooner.”
“I can’t thank you enough,” replied Star with deep sincerity, “if Eybron would have found out… I…”
“He needs a name,” put in Glide suddenly.
All three of the other wingtails turned towards him. His tone was adorned with emotion, which was highly unusual for him. Was the wingtail of rock getting choked up?
“The hatchling needs a name,” repeated the black wingtail, swallowing to get a hold of himself.
“What do you think Sky?” asked Star with anticipation, “the honour goes to you.”
“Umm…I…ah,” stammered Sky. Silently he was kicking himself for not thinking about it sooner. He had expected that they would discuss it months in advance of an egg actually hatching.
Looking around desperately for an idea, Sky’s eyes settled on the gap in the leaves above where the light of the night moon was shining down. A radiant, silver lined cloud hovered in the sky surrounded by stars.
“How about… Cloud?” suggested Sky.
The blue wingtail would never know that many many seasons ago when he hatched his father had looked up and done the same thing.
“Cloud,” repeated Star as she held up the hatchling in her arms.
The wingling’s tail flopped down, revealing a small puffy formation on the end.
“…what a lovely name.”
With waves of pure joy flowing through him, Sky carried on with what was probably the best night of his life. With the hatred of his entire race following him though, it was only a matter of time before he would have to face the very elders that condemned him to death so long ago. If tonight was his best night, then tomorrow could very well be his worst.
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