Part IV:
When Littlefoot finally awoke from his long and hard-earned sleep the sun was just beginning to rise in the sky. The birds were singing in the trees and the sounds of insects twittered in the nearby reeds. Littlefoot was the first of the gang to rise from his slumber, but he didn’t bother to awake the others. There was no need to hurry now that Tyrus was off their trail, so realistically he didn’t even have to wake up at all, he could just lay back down again and rest for a while…
In the end his thirst won out over the urge to sleep, and Littlefoot lugged down to the river. In his half-awake state he sipped out of the stream, and after a good minute of drinking he felt satisfied. The longneck licked his lips and looked at his reflection in the water… only to see something horrifying looking back at him.
Littlefoot gasped in surprise, that couldn’t be him! There was a weird wrinkle underneath his eyes, and the lines on his face were totally different. What’s going on, what’s happening to him? He brought one of his wet feet up to his face and rubbed below his eyes to make sure it was real, that he wasn’t imagining what he saw. It was real… this really was his face.
Although he was disillusioned Littlefoot decided it wasn’t an immediate threat to his existence, so hunger won out and he padded along the side of the small river looking for a nice group of treestars to eat. The forest was tall and dark, but that also meant there was plenty of green food – provided he could reach it.
The dew on a nearby tree sparkled in the sunlight, making it look particularly tasty. Littlefoot reached up to get the leaves, and he stretched and stretched but it was too high. He would have to get at them another way.
“What’s the matter, too high for you?” said a familiar voice from behind him. With a start Littlefoot turned around to come face to face with a longneck he had known for a while, but it wasn’t Ali. He gasped in amazement.
“Shorty? Is that you?”
“Who are you calling short?” Shorty pressed as he advanced towards Littlefoot.
“It’s me… Littlefoot,” Littlefoot replied before adding, “You know… your brother.”
“Littlefoot,” Shorty repeated, before backing up a bit, “wow you’ve changed a lot since me and Bron came to the valley. How did you make it all the way out here?”
Littlefoot remembered what he saw in the river, and shivered in fear about how Shorty didn’t know it was him at first. Was he injured at some point along the way? Maybe it was the gas in the Land of the Mists, or perhaps it was something in the tunnels that did it.
“Is something wrong with me Shorty, with my face?” Littlefoot asked his brother desperately, but Shorty just laughed.
“It’s called growing up… it happens,” The green longneck said reassuringly as he used his front left foot to point out his face, which had a similar but less visible wrinkle underneath his eye, “see… it’s happening to me too.”
“Wow, you mean it’s normal? I’m supposed to look this way?”
“Well you’ve grown haven’t you? ... I couldn’t see either of us reaching a tree that high when we were just hatchlings,” Shorty commented.
Littlefoot looked at the tree, and for the first time he noticed that the world wasn’t as big as it used to be. He certainly had grown, but it had been so subtle he hadn’t noticed it. Who knows how long his face, his whole body had looked like this before it occurred to him that things had changed.
“Alright, so if you’re here… that means dad’s here too!” Littlefoot pointed out excitedly.
“Yep, we’re all here. This is our home.”
…
“Hey Ali, this is Shorty. He’s my brother,” said Littlefoot.
Ali, Petrie, Ducky and Spike had woken up to find Littlefoot talking with a strange longneck he had just met. Shorty had changed so much even the three of them that knew him didn’t recognize him. Ali of course, had never met Shorty before.
“You have a brother Littlefoot,” asked Ali as she raised an eyebrow in confusion, “why didn’t you tell me about him?”
“He was probably hiding me from you, and I don’t blame him,” answered Shorty, butting in front of Littlefoot before he could reply, “If I was friends with someone as pretty as you, I’d probably want to keep it all to myself too.”
“Thank you,” Ali chuckled, and Shorty smiled lustfully back. Littlefoot felt his temperature rising.
“We are glad to see you Shorty, we are,” Ducky said.
“Petrie glad too, only… me hope you pass longneck test this time.” Petrie added, and Shorty glared at him for the tease. Everybody but Ali and Shorty laughed.
“Hey Shorty can you take us to see my dad?” asked Littlefoot.
“He’s usually by the big willow, in the center of the forest,” Shorty responded, but he wasn’t looking at Littlefoot. He was staring at Ali.
“There’s a clearing there were he hangs around with the other adult longnecks – it’s not that far you should be able to find it on your own.”
“You’re not coming with us?” inquired Littlefoot.
“Na, I would like to show your friend around, if that’s what she wants,” Shorty replied, and he continued to smile at Ali. She looked uncertain.
“Well… it could be fun, but I think Littlefoot wants us to go with him.”
“I don’t care what Littlefoot wants, I’m talking about what you want. Someone as pretty as you deserves everything she wants.”
Shorty was clearly flirting with Ali, and Littlefoot would have none of it.
“She’s coming with me Shorty,” Littlefoot said forcefully. So forcefully that Shorty turned around and glanced angrily at him.
“Back off Littlefoot, she’s mine and that’s final.”
His brother lowered his stance, signifying he was getting ready for a fight.
“No it’s not!” Littlefoot yelled back.
“Oh yeah, what are you going to do about it?” baited Shorty.
Things were getting really ugly. Spike and Ducky backed up in fear while Petrie just covered his eyes.
“Me can’t watch this,” the flyer declared in fright.
Littlefoot ground his teeth and stepped forward defiantly. The moment he did so Shorty made the first move, and swiped his tail at his face. The blow glanced, but it hurt. With a snarl Littlefoot jumped at him and a horrible melee erupted.
Ali watched in shock as they shoved, butted and roared at each other. It was primal rage at its worst. After what seemed like an entire minute Shorty began to tire and Littlefoot charged hitting him right in the midsection and knocking the green longneck off his feet. The blow knocked the wind out of him, forcing Shorty to lie there on the ground trying to catch his breath. Littlefoot was breathing hard too… he limped up to his brother and addressed him with the contempt of the moment.
“Ali’s coming… with me.”
Shorty glared back at him and groaned in pain. Tears began to pool in the corners of his eyes. Slowly and surely he rose to his feet.
“I hate you Littlefoot,” he spat in a tone of voice barely above a whisper. He turned and limped back into the forest. After a few moments he was gone. The entire incident had lasted a minute and thirty seconds, but to Ali it had passed two quickly to comprehend. She didn’t know what to think.
“Littlefoot, that was very bad, it was, it was,” said Ducky as she walked next to him and looked up at her friend sadly. Littlefoot glanced down at her, and right then knew he had done something terrible. He needed to fix it.
“Shorty… Shorty wait!” Littlefoot called out after his brother, but Shorty was already gone.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bron was enjoying the pleasant mid-morning sun as he ate his breakfast. The clearing in the middle of the forest was a large an open area spotted with trees, making it an excellent feeding ground for longnecks who generally require a lot of space.
Today he was thinking… specifically, thinking about Shorty. His adopted son was evolving into a fine young longneck, and he seemed more eager to grow everyday. What concerned Bron was how many fights he was getting into almost on a daily basis. Losing both his parents was hard on Shorty, and Bron had tried his best to be a good role model but there was a part of Shorty’s nature he just couldn’t fix. Perhaps it was a scar that would never disappear.
“Hey Bron, there’s this flyer who says he needs to see you,” said a longneck about his age named Brayton, “he says it’s urgent.”
“Well send him over… I’m not busy this morning.” Bron responded kindly.
The flyer turned out to be a blue wingtail named Sky, someone whom he had never heard of before. Wingtails lived in the Feral Forest over the western mountains, but mostly kept to themselves and rarely left their homeland. It surprised the adult longneck to be hearing from one, so it must be important.
“So you believe that there is a threat to this valley… from a sharptooth named Tyron?” Bron asked.
“Absolutely… he pursued my friends and me through the Icy Peaks and the Cratered Glen with the intention of catching and killing us,” Sky summarized quickly, “Are we safe here in your forest?”
“Of course,” Bron laughed lightly, “no normal sharpteeth would dare come in here with this many of us to deal with.”
“Tyron is not a normal sharptooth Mr. Longneck, and I believe he will not just let us be here. I would advise taking precautions for your own safety and the safety of your herd.”
“Didn’t you hear him flyer?” interrupted Brayton harshly, “… no sharptooth would dare come in here with this many longnecks ready to drive him out.”
Bron ignored him.
“What ëprecautions’ do you want us to take?” the adult longneck asked curiously.
“Keep your children within sight at all times, and have those of your herd travel in pairs,” Sky suggested.
Bron thought about it for a moment, looking out over the field where nearly his entire herd was gathered and feeding. Hatchlings were joyously playing in the grass, while the parents reached into the tops of the trees to pull down bunches of leaves to feed themselves and their offspring. Bron made his decision.
“Those are well thought, but Brayton is right. We haven’t had sharptooth come in here ever before… but we do have a system in place to deal with them if they do. I will not impose restrictions on my herd without the presence of a real threat, but I thank you for feeling the need to come and warn us. It is appreciated.”
Sky opened his mouth to argue, but there was no point. The longneck leader of this forest had made his decision, and now he would have to live with it. His fate and the fate of his herd was now his own…
…
Littlefoot, Ali, and the rest of the gang walked along through the Forgotten Forest on the path that Shorty had told them to go. The trees were getting less dense and the great circle was making its presence known occasionally through the gaps in the greenery. Everyone looked happy at how lovely the day was, and how much green food around there was to eat – everyone except Littlefoot. He couldn’t stop thinking about the fight with Shorty, and just the events of the entire day. In one day he had found the lines of adolescence on his face, and fought his brother for a girl he liked. He was growing up really fast, and it was a strange and saddening thought. Unknowingly, the longneck started to fall behind the rest of the group. Ali stopped to let him catch up.
“Are you okay Littlefoot,” she asked.
“I don’t know Ali, today has just been so strange,” Littlefoot answered sadly.
Ali decided to cheer him up.
“You know… nobody has ever fought for me before.”
Littlefoot looked up at her in surprise, and found himself staring right into her eyes. Ali was smiling at him.
“I’m glad you care about me enough to want me around… Rhett was into himself too much to ever notice me.”
The two longnecks were really close together now, and their eyes were on level. Littlefoot’s heart started pumping really fast, and his vision started to blur.
“I-I’m sorry you had to see that… between me and Shorty it was wrong and I shouldn’t have–”
Ali interrupted him by leaning forward, and touching her nose to his. Littlefoot had never felt anything like it, not even when she kissed him at the edge of the Land of the Mists. It was like he was living a dream. The moment only lasted a few seconds, before they parted.
“It’s so strange Littlefoot, but watching you fight made me want to be with you even more,” Ali whispered into his ear.
“Hey Littlefoot you slower then belly-dragger, hurry up!” shouted Petrie from the air as he flew over their heads, spoiling the moment.
“I guess we have to go see your dad now,” Ali said disappointingly.
“Yeah,” replied Littlefoot without enthusiasm, before adding positively “come on you’ll like him.”
Now he had even more to think about then he had before, but this time all of his thoughts were centered on a single thing - his first real kiss.
…
The gang reached the open field just as the great circle was high in the sky, signifying noon. After a quick lunch, Littlefoot commenced the search for his father. It didn’t take a long time at all; as he was exactly were Shorty said he would be – next to the willow in the center of the field. Several other longnecks were there too, and they appeared to be speaking about something. Littlefoot ran with Ali close behind, and as he got closer he also spotted Sky in the tree listening in on the discussion with the longnecks. He had been wondering where the blue wingtail had run off too.
“Dad…Dad!” shouted Littlefoot as he ran.
Bron had been lying down, leaning on one of his paws in boredom when he suddenly heard the call and sprang up. The other longnecks turned to him in shock.
“Littlefoot?” Bron yelled back, “Littlefoot you made it!”
The two longnecks met at some point in the field, and Bron lowered his nose to touch Littlefoot’s.
“I knew one day you would find us here son, that you would find where my herd came from.” Littlefoot’s father said in a joyous tone. He was so glad to see his son again.
“I’m glad to see you too dad… but it’s because of Sky that we made it this far,” Littlefoot said as he smiled and looked to Sky in the tree. Bron turned and did the same.
“Well then, it would appear there is a lot more to our blue visitor then meets the eye,” Bron said so that all the other longnecks could hear him. They began to whisper amongst themselves.
“Yeah, there certainly is,” added Littlefoot with a smile.
Up in the tree several yards away Sky stood amazed. For all his intellect he had absolutely no idea that the elder whom he had been speaking with was related to Littlefoot, but even so it was a pleasant and excellent surprise. It meant that not only were they welcome here, but that they were honoured guests.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prince Tyrus awoke with a sharp pain to his side. It wasn’t a dull, burning pain like the one all over his body, but a slamming pain that comes from a kick to the side. He opened his eyes and roared, causing the ground to shake and rumble. The sharptooth turned on the ground like a snake to face his attacker.
“Has the hunt proved too difficult for our noble young prince, or did he simply forget to watch his step?” came the taunting words of a fellow sharptooth.
All around fast-biters made chattering sounds akin to laughter, each one mocking Tyrus’ prized image. He would not be embarrassed like this. Looking around the first thing he noticed was how unusually large and physically fit all the fast-biters looked… they certainly weren’t his kin. The long scars that ran from the tops of their heads to the tips of their noses revealed what they truly were. They were Tyron’s elites – the Stalkers. This meant that the sharptooth jeering him could only be royalty like him, their leader and his despicable uncle known as Tharon.
“Tharon, what is your miserable hide doing here? What dirty work has father got you doing this time?” Tyrus spat as he rose from the ground.
Once the prince was on his feet, the fast-biters stopped laughing. If there was one thing sharpteeth respected it was size, and once it became clear he was over three times as big as they were they shut their mouths. Tyrus was big, but unfortunately Tharon was bigger.
“The work of the Stalkers is none of your concern Prince,” Tharon snarled, “this entire hunt you have been senselessly leading my brother’s forces on ends right now. By his will, all of your servants now belong to me… I suggest you don’t challenge this and force my hand.”
A bird was circling above, and it cawed in delight at the scene that was conspiring below. Tyrus took one look up at it, before glancing at the forest that covered the entire sight line to his right. The bird’s name was Macaw, and he was a translator. If Macaw was here, as well as Tharon and a large bunch of his Stalkers, that could mean only one thing.
“You intend to assimilate that forest into Tyron’s domain?” pressed Tyrus.
Tharon snarled, along with a good bunch of his Stalkers. The Prince was right.
“Pretty smart aren’t you… just like your father,” Tharon said with contempt as he beckoned his fast-biters to follow him, which they did, “… and if you want to live to return to your father, you will stay out of my way.”
Tyrus’ face burned as the entire force of fast-biters, including his own, moved to follow Tharon into the Forgotten Forest. In total, there must have been over three dozen of them. Redgar passed him and hissed bitterly. Clearly the fast-biter didn’t think enough of him to be loyal beyond orders. He would pay for his disloyalty.
In Tyron’s empire the Stalkers were the only sharpteeth who were trained from birth to fight and kill. Freed of any need to hunt, they endlessly practised their skills and honed their art of death to one they could use at any time and in any place without hesitation. They knew how to stay in the shadows and the dark, and are supernaturally silent in their work. ëStalker’ was only the accepted name that most sharpteeth had for them. Amongst the lowliest of them, they were known as ëchild-killers’, and for good reason. Their primary target was children, to keep the leaf-eaters in line. A threehorn for example, if fully grown could defend itself from any attack, but it could not stop its children from being culled in their nests while they slept. Fear was a cruel and barbaric pinnacle of his father’s empire… one that he used often to ensure the food supply remained cooperative.
Prince Tyrus almost felt sorry for whatever lived in that forest, for death was coming their way.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When Star awoke in the morning, the sunrise was just peeking into their family tree in the Feral Forest. It was a rude awakening however, as Glide told her what he had arranged for her on the previous night. She completely flipped out.
“You did WHAT!?!” Star yelled as Glide told her about her date with Eybron.
“I had to do it Star, I needed his help,” Glide retorted desperately, “I had hoped you would understand.”
“Understand? How did you possibly think I would understand you arranging a date for me, without my permission, on the morning I have to teach a class?”
“But Star –” began Glide.
“I’m not doing it… I’m not spending my day with the most cold-hearted wingtail in the entire forest just because you don’t want to fess up to your actions.”
Star was furious… she was so angry it was becoming difficult to speak.
“Calm down dear, please,” begged Aunt Fliela, “you’re waking up all the neighbours!”
“I only had one chance Star, we are family and we have to help each other out,” replied Glide desperately, “I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”
It took a few minutes for the situation to cool down, with Star sitting silently staring at the lines on the branch underneath her. Her tail wagged from side to side nervously as she thought about what to do, how to react to this. Her brother was desperate, and needed her help, but she had already given her heart to another.
“Glide,” Star said silently, “It’s just a date… right?”
“Yes, it’s only one day,” answered Glide, “you can just go wherever he takes you and refuse at the end… so I still get to keep our deal.”
Star didn’t answer for a few moments.
“Okay Glide, I’ll do it, but only because we are family and you really need my help.”
Glide lightly took hold of her hand.
“Thank you Star, I’ll make it up to you when I get back,” he answered.
“But what about Sky, will you hurt him?” Star asked.
“I can’t promise that this time, I’m sorry,” said Glide regrettably, “even if don’t participate, Eybron’s guards will end his life on their own – it’s what they do. I know you have something for him, but you have to learn to let go Star. He has betrayed us, and will pay the price.”
On that note a dark wingtail entered the tree. From his sturdy form and noble demeanour it was clear that he was one of Eybron’s guards and that he was here for Glide.
“Goodbye sis,” called out Glide as he left.
He didn’t see the tear running down her cheek.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
