Volucris_Emmergence

by Nina Burman

  Mo had been told by Ethan in no uncertain terms that you never fly in a storm. Ffirstly, if your wings get too wet they get too heavy and you can’t fly and of course being hit by lightning is never a good idea., Tthen there is the wind to contend with which can blow you in unpredictable ways. So basically, a death trap was heading their way and Mo and the others were already exhausted. She looked up to Lordes - he was on the opposite side of the formation to Mo - he was shouting instructions to those in-front and behind him. “Drink the rest of the blood in your packs,s we are too close to the land to go up and avoid the storm, we have to go through it. Stay close together, Ethan and I will guide us in, just keep close to the one in front of you.”

  Mo grappled with her blood. Iit was tricky doing anything with your hands when flying but she managed to gulp it down feeling it slide down her throat, giving her the boost she so desperately needed. The older Volucris were moving around her and the younger ones headed to the back., Benji was right ahead of her, his white wings acting like a beacon for her to follow. She could feel the increase in the wind as it buffeted her from side to side, she was quick to adjust her position trying as hard as she could not to be knocked off course. Then the rain hit. Iit was like being hit by a thousand needles., Tthe rain stung her face and arms and her wings felt so heavy she found it harder and harder to flap them at all, it was like flying through treacle. She could see to her relief the group were heading down, she could hardly see anything with the wind and rain so she just concentrated on Benji’s wings ahead of her. The land came into view, the winds still buffeting the whole group about. Mo was unsure how she was going to be able to land, her wings were being thrown back and forth and she could barely raise them at all now. Iit took all her strength just to keep them outstretched so that she did not plummet to the ground. She looked over to her right, she could see Ethan had moved further back amongst the group. Hhe seemed to be speaking to each of the young Volucris in turn, giving them instruction., Sshe could see on her side Tristan was doing the same, currently shouting something at Benji and he was nodding his head. Mo marvelled at the skill of both of them. Tthey were being thrown about as they moved between the group, but always able to re-correct themselves. Tristan came along side Mo.

  “You are doing great. Jjust keep your wings as you are, we will drop down soon. Wwhen we are almost landing, raise your wings straight up so you drop quick. Jjust follow what Benji does., Aas soon as you have landed fold your wings in and head for the trees.”

  Mo nodded although she had no idea how she would have the strength to raise her wings at all., Tristan moved further back and the group started to descend rapidly, faster than Mo had ever come into land before., Sshe saw Benji raise his wings and fall so she followed suit, but at the same time a huge gust of wind blew her whole body to the side., Iinstead of landing on her feet she came in on her side sliding through the sodden ground, stones and mud covering her body and flying into her mouth and eyes., Sshe had no control and just let herself slide hoping she would soon stop and not hurt herself. She finally slammed into the base of a tree knocking all the wind out of herself., Hher lungs burned as she tried desperately to gather her breath back, but nothing would work. Hher nose was full of mud and her wings felt like large wet lumps dragging her into the ground. She flailed around fighting for breath., Sshe felt a hand on her shoulder and then on the side of her face as she looked into deep brown eyes,

  “Moria focus, calm yourself, you just need to breathe, concentrate, let your body do the work, it knows how to breathe.”

  She did as she was told, concentrating on those eyes, allowing her body to re centre itself, and then she took a breath - the relief undeniable as oxygen filled her lungs. Her eyes began to refocus and she found it was Ethan who had come to her aid. , Sshe looked around for Benji, had he landed ok?

  “He is with Isabella, she landed badly too.” Ethan let her know as he helped her stand., Tthe rain was lashing against them both and Ethan guided them to the tree line which gave some shelter. Sure enough, Benji was kneeling next to his mother who had sustained a blow to the head. , Iit was bleeding a little and her guards were fussing round her. Benji looked up as Ethan and Mo stumbled into the trees. Hhe rushed to her side, “you ok?” hHe asked. “Yeah fine, just another bad landing, I really need to work on those!” they both grinned.

  “Is Isabella ok?”

  “Yeah just a scratch, although her guards seem to be blaming each other for the fall.”

  “You knew didn’t you, about the storm, you said you could smell it, what did you mean?”

  “Couldn’t you smell it too?”

  “No of course not.”

  Benji looked confused, he was about to start explaining himself when Tristan came up behind him.

  “Come on you two, we need to get shelter and food unless you want to stay out in this all night!”

  He, of course, was right even though the trees gave some shelter they were all getting soaked still., Benji shrugged and went after Tristan. Mo looked around for Ethan expecting him to still be behind her but he too was already moving further into the forest, gathering materials together. T The group worked quickly together, unpacking the large packs and taking down some smaller trees for use as shelter and for firewood. The packs were wrapped in large canvas sheeting which Mo soon discovered would become their shelter. After about 2 hours of cutting down wood, hammering it into the ground, pulling sheets on, lots of shouting and direction, they finally had the structures in place. Mo could only describe them as yurts, large round structures, although once inside they had high ceilings to accommodate all of the wings. Around the sides everyone was busy making cots for themselves and in the centre was a fire that Thea was expertly lighting, although Mo spied a piece of modern equipment to help with that job, a flint. It was proving difficult to light a fire as the wood had been so wet, but after a few attempts it finally sprung into life. The group had, of course, split into the four tents, not all able to fit into one. Mo was with Thea, Isabelle and Grace, all girls which Mo didn’t think was entirely on purpose, it’s just how it seemed to work out. They were all soaked through and exhausted. They huddled round the fire all with their wings up trying to dry them, they looked like they were worshipping some sort of fire god. Ethan turned up a little later with some food, some sort of deer he had caught and expertly butchered, all ready to go on the fire., Tthey all ate in silence together and then headed for their cots. Mo had wanted to seek out Benji but the storm was still raging outside and she did not fancy getting her wings wet again., Sshe could also barely keep her eyes open so she just dropped on to her cot that was covered in a thick fur that felt like silk against Mo’s bone tired body, she fell asleep straight away.

  Chapter 40

  Mo woke to light streaming into the front flap of the tent., Tthe fire was still burning even though most of the smoke escaped out of a hole in the roof, some still swirled round making Mo’s eyes water, she was now hot, sweaty and very thirsty. All the other cots were empty so she got up and headed outside., Thea greeted her first. Hher hair was wet but it had not been raining and her wings were full of dew drops.

  “Morning, if you head down the track there is a waterfall you can freshen up in.”

  Mo nodded her thanks and began to take in her surroundings. Although they had arrived in daylight yesterday, it was so stormy and windy she had barely taken any notice., Sshe found now that they were in a lush rain forest slightly on the edge where the foliage was not so thick. The tents had been placed in a round circle facing each other and another fire had been built in the middle. Ethan was tending this fire and cooking what looked like the rest of the deer he had butchered the night before, it smelt amazing. Mo followed Thea’s instructions and headed down the hill a little way. She found the river first and followed it a few hundred yards before it dropped over a cliff in an amazing waterfall. She looked over the edge and could see Tristan and Benji washing the worst of the night’s hard labour off their skin. She was glad
to see, even though they were bare chested, they still had on their trousers. Benji looked up and waved enthusiastically.

  “Come on down, the water is fine.” hHe cheerfully shouted up to her, “You can glide down.” Mo did just that. Sshe spread her wings and stepped off the edge, slowly circling the narrow cove to the bottom. She bounded up to Benji giving him a swift kiss.

  “If you two are going to get smoochy I’m off,.” Tristan groaned., Hhe headed up on foot to one side of the waterfall. Mo could see there would not be enough room to take off. The pool beneath the waterfall was stunning, crystal clear surrounded by the most luscious greenery and bright flowers. Mo would have loved to dive in, that was one element about having wings that was a downside; never to swim again. She instead joined Benji on the side of the pool and dipped in up to her waist, making sure to keep her wings up. She washed herself and helped Benji get some grime off his back., Tthey then both went up to the waterfall letting the spray coat their wings to help wash all the mud off. Mo’s had got particularly caked in mud from her bad landing and Benji had to help her preen them. It was such a strange but wonderful feeling having someone else touch your wings, it felt very intimate and exhilarating. Once finished they climbed to a higher rock and bathed in the sunshine to get dry. This was the first time they had been alone for a number of days, but the pool was so peaceful and they were so intimate with each other they did not want to spoil it with endless questions of what had happened to them both recently. Mo just lay her head in Benji’s lap lying on her front while he lazed back resting on his wings. It was incredibly peaceful. All too soon Mo could hear Benji’s tummy rumbling and the smell of the cooking food wafted down to them.

  “Come on, I know this feels great but we both need to eat.”

  Benji nodded in agreement and they headed hand in hand back to the camp.

  They all ate together as a group. Tthe meat was lovely complemented by some seeds, nuts, avocados and small bananas that were growing all around them. Ethan had even gathered the blood from the animal,l which came in very handy as what they had bought from Ety was almost gone and they would have to start relying on the dried preserved blood which Mo did not like as much and she found did not have the same effect.

  She was thankful that Ethan was such a good hunter and thought she should join him on his next kill. She had already been shown how to collect blood and butcher an animal on Ety, but she had never actually done it, and if she and Benji were somehow going to go off on their own to search for her grandmothegrandmother,r she knew it would be a skill worth having. She now wished she had spoken with Benji that morning about her real desire to come back to the mainland, she was only assuming he would come with her, she could not be sure,. eEspecially now with Isabella here., Tthey spent a lot of time together and Mo could see how pleased Benji was to have her in his life, she was not sure she would be able to take him away from her, maybe Isabella and her guards could help she thought. This thought made her feel much better and she resolved that after a week or so on the mainland and after they had got a handle of what was happening here, she would broach this idea first with Benji and then her father., Sshe could not see why he would disagree, if they all went together they would then be perfectly safe.

  After they had all eaten Lordes gathered them together around the main fire.

  “This will be our base here and if we find any Volucris we can first bring them here before transporting them to Ety. Firstly, we will see how the land lies, see exactly how many Volucris there are that need our immediate help. We will go out in daily searching parties heading for the major towns and cities in the vicinity. Clearly there is no-where near enough of us to make a large search. Wwe will be a kind of scouting party and once we get a clearer understanding of what is happening we can then start to involve other clans to help. Isabella and her guards will already be leaving us, heading up to the north America clans to find out what has happened in that region.”

  Mo was surprised, she turned to Benji trying toit gauge his reaction, but he did not look at all surprised, he must have already known.

  Lordes continued. “Whilst we are searching we will also explore the other possibility of Volucris being held against their own will, anyone we come across we shall question. For those of you not used to our ways here, we have camped here many times before, it is safe as it can only be accessed by Volucris. Tthere are cliffs to one side and dense jungle to the other ,so when you are here you are safe. However, as we venture out we are not., Ssome of us witnessed some of the horrors last time we were here, desperate people doing anything they can to survive., Wwhen we approach people it will be with the utmost of caution, anyone of them may hold a weapon and be extremely dangerous, think first before you act. Also, look to the sky, there are other Volucris out there but as we heard from Isabella, they may not all be friendly - have your wits about you. For today I will take Ethan, Benji and Mo and check out the main city to the West. Tristan, Thea and the three boys can explore the smaller town to the north. Isabella and her guards will be leaving and I know I speak for everyone here who wishes them all well and look forward to meeting again in the future.”

  Mo’s head was buzzing. Aall she had thought she was planning was going to change again,. Iif Isabella was heading north then that is where she should go. Sshe knew her Grandma would be in that direction, but she had not even spoken to Benji about this let alone get his agreement, it was all happening so fast. She grabbed Benji’s arm and pulled him into the nearest tent.

  “Did you know Isabella was leaving?.”

  “Yes, we spoke about it last night.”

  Mo was surprised how casually Benji was acting. “Are you not upset?”

  “Of course, I have just found my mother, having never seen her before after the rest of my family was wiped out and now she is leaving too! But there is so much to be done Mo, Isabella was telling me of some desperate situations of young Volucris that really need our help, it’s important to put our own feelings aside to help all of our kind survive.”

  “Just our kind though, not the humans, don’t you want them to survive too?”

  Benji did not respond straight away, in fact he looked away., Mo was surprised at his reaction. Tthey had spoken many times about how awful it had been watching the world die around them, feeling so helpless. “So you don’t care about them?” Mo said again.

  “Of course I care Mo, and it’s terrible what has happened, but Isabella has helped me to see what is really important and if we could help everyone we would, but we can’t and those we can help have to be Volucris first.”

  Was Mo wrong to be feeling that what Benji was saying she could not agree with, was she out of step? She was Volucris of course, she could see how the survival of the species was vital but she also felt the same way about the human population.

  “We should help everyone we can Benji not just the Volucris, I know it’s an impossible task but we should be looking at ways to help.”

  “That is the problem Mo, it is an impossible task, we need to prioritise, don’t you see?”

  “No I don’t.”

  This was their first argument and there was so much Mo needed to talk to Benji about and there was so little time. Sshe could hear the others outside readying to leave. But she couldn’t just agree with him on this, it was too important to her., Sshe figured that if Benji and Isabella only wanted to help Volucris, not humans, that would also include only Volucris that could have wings, not those that had their wings cut away. She did not think either would show any interest in Mo’s desire to find her grandmother, it looked like she would have to head out alone.

  Benji moved towards her and put his arms round her waist. “Let’s not fight, this is an exciting and brave thing we are doing., I know you care about your friends and your grandmother, you have people you want to help. , I guess apart from my Dad, all humans I came across wanted to hurt me. I do get where you’re coming from I just think it’s our time now, time for us to thrive.”

&n
bsp; Mo knew she did not have the time to argue the point now that it shouldn’t matter if human or Volucris people were worth saving. She looked into his blue eyes and gave in nodding and smiling, there would be more time for discussion but now was not it, he had to say goodbye to his mother and Benji was right, she did not want to fight him. She gave him a swift kiss and smile.

  “We can talk about the rights and wrongs some other time, but right now you should go say your goodbyes.” Benji smiled and kissed her back heading out of the tent. Mo followed him out, he bounded over to his mother and they both embraced as though they had always known one anotheanother, as though they had never been apart. It warmed Mo’s heart to see what a strong bond they had and she knew, in that moment, Benji would follow Isabella’s path and protect only Volucris, like her father was doing, and she also knew that would never sit well with her even though she loved Benji. Sshe would help anyone if it was needed and she would go and find her grandmother with or without him.

  Mo went and said her goodbyes to Isabella and her guards. The beautiful Volucris kissed her gently on each cheek and wished her well, asking her to look out for her son and that she would return soon once her task was complete.

  Once they had watched them leave the rest of the group started to ready themselves for take-off. Mo was glad to be up in the air ,not having to talk to anyone ,just following her father ahead of her, it gave her the time to think. It was now going to be harder than ever to go and find her grandmother she could see that. Benji wanted to follow this mission and help only Volucris and for him that was more important than anything else. Was Mo being selfish wanting to find her grandmother, there was a bigger picture after all and shouldn’t she stay and also help rather than fulfilling her own need? She had been so focussed on her training and then everything with Benji she had put to the back of her mind what had happened here, what had happened to her friends. Of course, she thought of her grandmother but she had some reassurances from Ethan and Lordes that the commune she was on would have been safe. Would her other friends have survived whatever was thrown at them, would they still be living in the same place?, Iif there were safe havens at military bases, maybe they were there.? She had a strong desire to just break free from her group and fly home to find out but she knew that would be reckless. , Sshe was strong and Ethan had taught her a lot but she was no-where near ready to be on her own own,awayown, away from the others. She looked over to Ethan and wondered if he would help her.? He probably felt the same way as the others, only Volucris should be helped. She felt a heavy weight in her heart, there was nothing she could do right now., Sshe resolved to carry on as normal for now, see how the next few days went and then maybe talk to Benji about it again., Hhe may be able to make the right decision, although in her gut she knew he would not be able to convince her.