The Gryphon Generation Book 2: A New Era

by Alexander Bizzell

  “Unnatural? Yeah, that’s what they say about Johnathen and I.” Thyra replied.

  “Have you ever thought about moving?” Viola suddenly asked. Thyra blinked her eyes as the quiet osprey finally spoke up.

  Her voice was so soft and gentle that Thyra had to replay the question in her head. There had certainly been times when they had wanted to pack up and leave everything behind, but they had never been able to bring themselves to do it. “We have. But I don’t think we ever would. I mean it’s our home, and I want to change the town. I don’t want to run, I want to stay and fight.”

  “I understand that. It was hard for us, but we had no choice. We moved here to start a new life hoping that another city and a fresh start would be good for us, especially with the promise of playing gryphball together. We hope maybe if we become famous gryphball players, people will respect us more. And hopefully it will give other gryphons like us a voice to speak up,” Priscilla explained.

  A loud siren interrupted the both of them as the announcer came on. “And that’s it for the first half, folks! The Redtails are up eleven to zero.”

  The team made their way towards the dugout as Victor walked to the sideline. He called for everybody to gather around with his wings. Thyra and the others stood up from their bench spot to join the rest of the team around Victor. The rear guards and Brandon, the goalie, seemed just as rested and relaxed as the minute they left the bench themselves.

  Victor looked around to all the team members as he praised them. “This is fantastic. Exactly what I wanted to see. They brought out lambs for us to slaughter today, and we are making fools of them all. Provided, it doesn’t make a very interesting game for the crowd, but I’m not too concerned with that right now. Since we are far ahead, I’m going to put out the reserves this next half,” Victor said looking over to Thyra and the others. “Everyone needs game time. So air centers and guards, take a break this half. Let your teammates help carry the ball to victory for the day.”

  Thyra felt her hackle feathers rise up with excitement at the opportunity to play. She looked over to Antonio, Rachel, and Aadhya with a beak grin before receiving it back.

  Victor looked down to the reserves. “With that being said, you let them get too close to scoring a goal, and I’ll pull you out. Understood?”

  “Yes sir!” they called out. Victor nodded his head and picked his clipboard back up.

  “Good. Now everyone get a drink and get ready. You’re on in five.”

  Chapter 10 Confrontation

  Johnathen switched on the television which was now hanging crooked on the wall. The coffee maker beeped loudly as the weatherman talked about an incoming storm. Johnathen took one of the non-broken cups out of the cupboard and filled his mug with coffee.

  The morning sun beamed in from the kitchen windows, shedding light on the littered kitchen. Various items from the drawers were scattered across the floors and countertops. He walked over to the refrigerator, avoiding the broken dishes and cutlery decorating the ground, and retrieved the creamer.

  Johnathen placed the mug down and poured the creamer into it, stirring it in while staring blankly at the television. “Why do we even have weathermen anymore?” he wondered to himself.

  He picked one of the barstools up off the floor and sat down, then sighed and rubbed his tired eyes. All the commotion from the break-in and having to drive to Thyra’s game yesterday had left him exhausted.

  He hated not telling Thyra about the break-in yet, but she had enough to worry about going to practice today after yesterday’s game. He had been happy to go to her first game, and even more excited that she was able to play the last half, although she barely had possession of the gryphball during that time. The opposing team had played so poorly in the second half that the team’s defenders were barely needed. In the end, the Redtails utterly destroyed the Parrots twenty-two to zero. Thyra had been able to make a couple passes and one solid tackle, but most of the game involved her hovering in place more or less.

  Johnathen took a sip of the hot coffee and let the roasted fragrance calm his nerves. A knock came from the door, causing Johnathen to look up. He went to the door and moved the chair that he had wedged in front of it to keep it closed.

  “Johnny! You look like hell,” said Keith with a slight smile on his face. He stood on the front porch with his hands in his suit pockets.

  “Yeah, no shit.” Johnathen shook his head and stepped to the side, inviting him in. “And looks like you finally shaved that stupid mustache.”

  Keith’s black hair was cut close to his scalp, much shorter than the last time he had seen him, and the scruffy mustache he usually sported was gone. Although, he had not done anything about his bushy eyebrows.

  Keith laughed and slapped Johnathen’s shoulder before stepping inside. “Kayla told me it had to go. Wasn’t too fond of it anyways.” Keith took a look around at the carnage and whistled. “Man. They really did a number on this place.” He watched as Johnathen pulled the chair back in front of the door to hold it shut. “Did they take anything?”

  “The computer,” Johnathen said, and kicked some books out of the way as he walked into the kitchen. “Coffee?”

  “Sure,” Keith responded. “At least they didn’t take the coffee maker. It wasn’t the cheapest birthday present, ya know.” He looked around the kitchen and frowned. His more playful demeanor faded as he saw several photo frames busted on the hardwood floor. “Why would they do this?”

  Johnathen found another intact coffee mug and inspected it. “I think they found out I had incriminating evidence on them,” he stated while filling the mug with coffee. Keith gratefully took it and sipped.

  They were both silent for a minute, staring at the television as a reporter went on about a car crash from last night. “You made backups, right?” Keith asked seriously.

  Johnathen shook his head. “No. I never got the chance to put them on a hard drive.”

  “Well, sorry to hear that. Let me know what I can do to help,” Keith said and put down his coffee mug. He walked over and picked up a busted photo frame off the floor. It was a picture of Thyra and Johnathen walking in the park. Keith handed the photo over to Johnathen “I remember taking this picture. It was from the company picnic, remember? You and Thyra won the game of tug a war, which wasn’t fair by the way, and won that free gift card.”

  “We never used that card either. It’s probably still around here somewhere.” Johnathen looked at the scattered mess around the kitchen and sighed. He put the photo down on the counter.

  “Well, how about this. I’ll help clean up but the first one to find the gift card gets to keep it. How about that?” Keith said with a little smile which made Johnathen chuckle. Keith stuck out his hand and Johnathen shook it.

  “Ok. You got a deal,” Johnathen said with a little more enthusiasm in his voice. Keith always had a way of turning a bad situation into a bearable one. Johnathen went into the laundry room and came back with a couple of brooms and dustpans and handed one to Keith. “So, what do you mean the tug a war wasn’t fair?”

  “Come on, Johnny! You know it was cheatin’! Thyra’s strong as an ox!” Keith exclaimed, and began to sweep up the broken dishware, glass, and trash into a pile.

  Johnathen grabbed the trashcan and moved it over to the middle of the kitchen floor. “That’s not cheating. Nothing in the rules said you couldn’t have a gryphoness,” he pointed out as he grabbed a couple cookbooks off the floor.

  Keith laughed and filled a dustpan before dumping it into the trash. “That’s a lawyer for ya. Always finding a loophole to win.” He looked around and raised a bushy eyebrow. “Speaking of Thyra, where is she?”

  “At gryphball practice by now,” Johnathen replied, picking up what dishware was salvageable.

  “Does she know about this?” Keith asked.

  “No. I didn’t want to bother her or make her worry. It wouldn’t do her any good.”

  “The longer you wait, the more mad she’s going to
be,” Keith prodded.

  Johnathen sighed. He was right about that one. “I’ll call and tell her tonight.”

  Keith shrugged and went back to cleaning. They worked in silence, picking up dozens of items from the floor, and throwing away whatever was broken. They moved into the living room and continued their work.

  “Well I’ve got some good news at least,” Keith said.

  “A bit of good news right now would really help,” Johnathen replied as he replaced books back onto the bookcase next to the television.

  “Overheard the boss talking about you. Said something about getting the paperwork together to hire you back fulltime,” Keith said with a smile.

  “Really? That is some good news then,” Johnathen said, finally smiling back as he finished stacking the rest of the books.

  Keith pointed to Johnathen’s beard and wild hair. “But, you can’t go back to work looking like a hipster,” he said and laughed when that earned a middle finger from Johnathen. Keith threw the cushions back onto the couch. “You look like you belong in some progressive indy rock band.”

  “At least I can pull it off. Plus, Thyra says she likes it,” Johnathen pointed out and followed Keith to the front door.

  Keith leaned down and inspected the damage, looking at the inner doorframe that was split open. “Guess I can’t argue with that. You know they always say, ‘happy wife, happy life.’” He moved the chair out of the way to open the front door. Then he opened and closed it multiple times to check for other damage. “At least they didn’t break the hinges. Just split the frame where the deadbolt was latched.” Keith stood back up. “You got screws and a drill?”

  “Yeah, in the garage.” Johnathen walked back into the kitchen, then out the door into the garage. He flicked on the light, which illuminated the immaculately clean and organized room.

  Keith followed and looked into the garage. “And they didn’t touch the mustang,” Keith pointed out. “I can’t imagine what you would do if that happened!”

  Johnathen handed Keith the drill.“I would probably be in jail for burning down that damned church,” he responded, pulling out some screws and drill bits from one of the toolbox drawers. They continued back to the front door and Keith crouched down in front of it.

  “Did you tell the cops that you know who did it?” Keith looked over the drill bits. He sized one up against the screws before putting it inside the drill.

  “Yeah. They said they would look into it, but I doubt they will. Mathew’s goons wouldn’t have left the bible behind if they were worried about evidence.” Johnathen pointed out and leaned against the sofa, watching Keith work. The drill fired up in a whirl before boring itself into the soft wood. Keith made multiple pilot holes through the doorframe and put the drill down once more.

  “You got a point. Maybe they paid the cops to look the other way, or maybe they have a fall guy ready to take the blame.” Keith pulled the bit out and replaced it with a Phillips head. “Or Matthew just don’t care. He might be slipping.” Keith lined up the first screw and pulled the trigger. The wood pulled together nice and tightly as Keith went down the line

  “Maybe.” Johnathen frowned. “And if he doesn’t care anymore . . . that has me worried. It would mean he’s being reckless now. Probably tired of hiding in the dark, pretending to be a righteous figure. Could be he’s starting to realize his goals aren’t being met. He is nothing else but driven, and that could be dangerous.”

  Keith finished the last screw and checked his handiwork. He stood up and closed the door, watching as it latched back into place again. “The only thing we can do is watch and wait.” He gave the handle a tug and nodded when it did not move. He handed the drill back to Johnathen. “There ya go. Now you have a door that closes, at least.”

  “Thanks for the help, but I could have done that,” Johnathen said and placed the drill on the table.

  “Not without splitting the wood even more. I’ve seen your so-called craftsmanship,” Keith sniped. “Like when you started that back deck for Thyra by yourself, and you…”

  Johnathen huffed. “Alright! Alright, I get the point.” He looked out the window and nerves shot through his body as he saw the same van from yesterday sitting outside on the street. A puff of smoke bellowed out of the window, and Johnathen could make out the man’s face.

  Keith noticed the sudden anger rising in his friend and turned to look outside. “Is that him?”

  “Without a doubt.” Johnathen quickly opened the door and walked down the front steps. Johnathen felt the same nervousness and anger he had felt yesterday and he clenched his fists as he approached the van. He looked to his right, and saw his neighbor outside watering the flowers. He could not make a scene right here.

  The man in the van must have seen him coming, because as he drew near the window rolled down fully. Johnathen walked up to the passenger window, and saw the man calmly sitting in his car, smoking a cigarette and playing with his phone.

  “Morning, Johnathen,” the man said without even bothering to glance up. Johnathen grit his teeth as Keith walked up beside him to peer inside.

  “Take your good morning and shove it up your ass,” Keith responded.

  The man looked up and sighed, staring at the two men standing at his door. The bags under his eyes were dark and he looked even more tired than he had the day before. He put down his phone. “Before y’all start yammering away, I didn’t have nothin’ to do with the break in.” He took another drag of his cigarette and flicked it out his window.

  Johnathen’s eyes narrowed as he stared him down. “Then how did you know about the break in?” he asked, hands gripping the window seal.

  The man looked him over before responding. “The boss ordered it, but I didn’t do it.”

  “So your boss is Bishop Matthew,” Johnathen replied, his voice rising in volume.

  The man shook his head and waved him off. “That insane bigot? No. I can’t stand him.”

  Both Keith and Johnathen were incredibly confused by this comment. They looked at each other and then back at the man. “Then what?” Johnathen began.

  “Listen, you’re not far off. My boss works for Matthew. Well, works with Matthew. He’s not too fond of the priest either, but it pays the bills right now. I don’t know what you got yourself mixed up in, son, but that guy really doesn’t like ya.”

  “No, you don’t know what you got yourself mixed up in,” Keith retorted, staring at the man.

  The man turned his attention to Keith and raised an eyebrow. “I’ve been in this field for twenty years now. I know exactly how to handle myself.”

  “And what field is that, exactly?” Keith asked.

  “Let’s call it, private investigating,” the man joked with Keith, almost grinning at his own comment. This just irritated Keith and Johnathen more and the man could see it. He raised his hands. “Boys. It’s not me your angry at, it’s Matthew. So, if you’re feelin’ froggy, why don’t you go down and confront him instead?”

  Keith grunted and backed up. He put a hand on Johnathen’s shoulder to pull him away. “Let’s go back inside. This asshole isn’t going to give us anything more.”

  Johnathen let go of the car door and looked at the man one last time. “At least tell me your name. You owe me at least that.”

  The man looked over Johnathen and thought for a minute. “Jack,” He finally answered.

  “Well, Jack, I guess I’ll see you around,” Johnathen said and started to walk away.

  “Unfortunately for both of us, you will,” Jack replied.

  The moment they were both inside, Keith shut the door behind Johnathen and turned to him. “We should call the police!”

  Johnathen shook his head and slumped down in his couch. “It wouldn’t matter. I’m sure the Macon Police know Matthew is tailing me. They were probably paid off to turn a blind eye. That’s why they barely wrote up a report for the break in.” Johnathen sighed, but suddenly a small smile grew on his lips. He pulled out his phone. “But, I
might have some other friends that could do something about it.”

  ***

  “Come on Thyra! Ten more seconds!” Jason yelled loudly.

  Thyra groaned in protest, but kept her shaking wings outstretched. She was standing in the open area of the weight room, and had weights attached to her wing tips. She stood in a wide stance, breathing hard and straining to keep her wings vertical. They began to droop towards the ground.

  “Keep them up! Don’t let them touch the ground! Five more seconds!” the golden eagle gryphon yelled. Thyra screeched and somehow found a new energy welling inside of her. She pulled them up straight again, still trembling. Jason grinned and waited even as the seconds past. “Five more!”

  “Come on!” Thyra exclaimed, but still held her wings outstretched for a few seconds more. Suddenly they collapsed to the ground and Thyra flumped down onto the mat, breathing heavily.

  Jason laughed and patted Thyra on the back. “There you go! Take a minute breather, and then have a go one more time.” He handed her a water bottle, which she took gratefully.

  Her wing shoulders burned and protested. She felt like they had been stabbed with red-hot knives. She took a heavy drink of water and huffed through her nares. “You said that was the last time.”

  “Yeah, I did. But I lied,” Jason said with a smile. He grabbed the water bottle from her and she struggled up on her feet one more, wings drooping on the mat.

  “Ready?” He asked once more. Thyra nodded in response. “Begin!”

  Thyra lifted her wings off the matt and held them out straight. She was shaking already, wings trembling with exhaustion. Thyra cursed under her breath and strained to keep them in the air. She looked over and saw Rachel approach. A towel was slung over the tiny gryphoness’ back and she was carrying a water bottle in her small beak.

  “Looks like you’re having fun!” Rachel teased and sat down next to Jason. Thyra shot Rachel a mean glance, which only earned a chuckle from the small gryphoness.

  “Keep your wings up! Twenty more seconds!” Jason shouted as Thyra’s wings began to droop once more. He looked down at the Kestrel next to him and nudged her playfully. “And you, if you antagonize Thyra again, I’ll make you do the same exercise but with more weight.” She quickly shut her little beak and nodded.