Now, this idea was originally thought up a few years ago when I was still doodling in notebooks rather than sketchbooks. But back then, I'll admit, I didn't have the patience to write it out. But it was an interesting concept! Just like the plot, it was a story about how a human is turned into a bat and thrown into the world of Silverwing, and joining the main characters on their quest to Hibernaculum.
The project itself was sparked back up from other stories like this, such as AmazingWriteronWing's 'Twilight Night' series and, most recently, Lilgrimmapple's 'Gone Batty'. Both can be found on this site!
Now, I'd like to point out that this is a self-insert story. Some people may not be a fan of it and may just ignore this story altogether. Which is perfectly fine, because you can't be forced or force others to like it, even if it's well written or the focus is still on the original main characters more and only occasionally on the self-insert him/herself.
So, a friendly reminder: If you don't like the story, just move along.
Other than that, I hope you all enjoy this! I'll be uploading chapters one by one as they are finished.
Please give a review and tell me what you think!
Have you ever felt stressed out from life? Has it ever gotten to a certain point where you wished you could be taken away from the real world and spend a day? Several days? Maybe even a few months someplace completely different? Maybe someplace in a story? A movie? I hit one of those points before. And I'll say it honestly…I sometimes think it was both an amazing and a terrifying wish.
But what wish did I make exactly? What do I mean by terrifying and amazing?
Well…it's a bit of a long story.
To understand what I mean, I'll start at the beginning. This is the story of an adventure I never thought I would have. A story of how I had been changed to understand of just how much alike we humans are to animals and the daily struggles we share. Or in this case…nightly struggles.
This is a story…of how I went from a man struggling in the real world...to a bat in a much bigger and more dangerous world than my own.
The air wasn't too bad.
Actually, it wasn't bad at all.
Even after the middle of October, and in the late evening, it was still surprisingly warm and cool outside, only the slightest chill happening every few hours when the wind blew. The smell of freshly fallen leaves in the evening dew added a nice calming touch to it, too. But it did little to soothe the only soul who wondered through the trees and bushes of the woods. A young man, in his early twenties, trudged through the leaves. He wasn't in a particularly happy mood. The young adult, Zak, gave a sigh as he passed under a fallen tree. An hour before he went into the woods, he had gotten into an argument with his parents. If he had to be honest, he felt like his anger was justified. It was the same lecture over and over again.
What's your future? What're you going to do for a career? Why don't you go out and make friends? It isn't right to be alone all the time.
It was the same questions over and over again. This time, he was sick of it and snapped back. He hated how his parents were always on his case about what he chose to do with his time and life. And friends? Well, he didn't have that many for sure. He had cousins and relatives, but, it wasn't exactly the same thing. He always found himself to be more comfortable when he was by himself. Although he did talk to other people once in a while, he always felt better being on his own. This was something else his folks were concerned about. They said he needed to socialize with others more.
Plus, he loved to draw and write. These were two other hobbies he enjoyed, even though they tended to take up most of his time after he was done with work and chores. This too also concerned his folks, even though they supported his interests.
"'We're only trying to help you be ready for life.'" Zak bitterly mimicked what his dad had said, "Yeah, right. More like trying to make sure I don't go and screw up my own future." He muttered, kicking a small pile of leaves, scattering the multicolored fragments in the air. After the argument, instead of going to his room like he always did, he decided he didn't want to be in the same building as his parents and went out. He could still hear his mom calling out to him to wait and trying to say sorry. He ignored her and kept walking. Eventually, he ended up in the woods just outside of his hometown.
It was a nice place. The people were friendly. Also, it felt good to live somewhere different.
This went through Zak's mind as he decided to sit and rest, sighing deeply as he took in his surroundings. It felt nice to get out and away from the house for a while. It gave him time to think and go over his own life for a bit. But, really, he only wanted to be on his own. Walking always helped him to calm down and relax. He sat there for a few minutes, listening to the sound of the wind blowing through the trees, the late autumn birds singing and his own breathing.
But that was broken by the chime of his phone. A text message coming through.
Taking it out, he tapped the screen to see who was trying to message him. Only one look at the screen and he frowned.
It was from his mom.
Please come back. We're sorry.
Zak deleted the message entirely, without hesitation, and locked his phone. Did they really think a simple apology would calm him down?
No. It wouldn't.
"Well," The boy sighed, getting up and dusting off the seat of his pants, "Guess I should head back anyways. Not going home, but, not much daylight left to stay here." With that, he turned around and began to trek back the way he came, the sun still bright enough to light his way. The orange glow of it gave the forest an almost peaceful and gentle setting. At least until the sun went down. Then it would feel more creepy and foreboding. Zak couldn't help but feel uneasy as he noticed how fast the sun was dropping. The lower it got, he darker it seemed to get.
"Whoa," He muttered quietly, "Hopefully I can get out of here in time." He kept walking, stepping over another fallen tree and going a bit faster.
Now…which way did he come from again?
Thirty minutes later…
"I'm lost on my own in the woods, with nobody else in earshot and a low phone battery. Great." He grumbled, before taking a deep breath, "JUST GREAT!" He yelled, knowing that there wasn't anybody around that could hear him. Not for at least another two kilometers. Zak could only mumble and growl to himself as he sat down, sighing deeply. What was he going to do? His phone only had ten percent of power. He didn't want to call his mom or dad. He didn't even want to use his flashlight and risk wasting the battery if he was going to keep getting lost.
This was perfect. Stuck in the woods. At night. How much better could it get? The sky was clear, thankfully. But that was it. It didn't make the forest much brighter.
Looking up into the sky, Zak watched as the stars began to appear. He never really stopped to properly look at how those many sparkling suns slowly came into view as the sun vanished in the horizon. One appeared. And then another. And another.
Then…he saw one single star. This one was the brightest of them all.
Unlike the others that were also bright, this one seemed to shine the most. A single, larger speck of light in a dark-blue sea of millions of others.
Just from seeing this, Zak realized that maybe he could make a wish.
"Pffff, yeah right," The boy chuckled, shaking his head, "Like that'll actually work. It's only a child's dream."
Despite his own words, his eyes did not leave the bright orb. Deep in his mind, it was telling him to just go for it. Even though he was twenty years old, and that the 'wish upon a star' thing was just pure imagination, his mind was saying that he should take the plunge and just wish for something.
Rolling his eyes, Zak sighed, "Well, okay. Not like it'll actually work." Looking up into the sky, he kept his eyes on the star and took a breath.
"If you really are a…wishing…star…there is one thing…that I really wish for. To escape. To get away from…all this stress of the real world and…go somewhere else. Experience a different life, maybe. Take a new perspective on the world. Go. On an adventure. I just wish…to be something different."
He finished. He waited.
How long did it usually take for a star to grant a wish?
"I think I just did the stupidest thing in my whole life." Zak drawled, head dropping into his hands dejectedly, "I'm stuck in the woods on my own, with no chance of anybody being out here and I just wished to a friggin' ball of hot air, millions of miles from here. Yeah, it's…it's a good night so far." He sarcastically muttered.
The young man sat there for a few more minutes, ignoring the chilly air that began to settle in. After what seemed like an eternity of ear ringing silence, the sound of a truck alerted him, bringing him back to reality as he whipped his head around in search of the direction it came from. If there was a truck…then that meant a ride home! Finally, his eyes managed to catch the glow of the headlights a few feet away from him.
'Finally,' He thought as he started to walk in the direction of the truck, 'Someone who can help.'
But when he got only a quarter of the way, he noticed something odd about his surroundings. In fact…an eerie feeling suddenly wormed its way into his gut. There was a fog beginning to obscure his view and a strange light forming right above him. It was slowly growing bigger and brighter by the second. Even the wind began to pick up, causing the fog to swirl and move around him like a smoky whirlpool.
"Whoa, hey," He shuddered, "What's going on?"
Before he could ask or even process any further of what was happening, an invisible force was slowly lifting him from the ground. Now he was beginning to panic.
"WHOAHEYWHATISTHIS?!" He babbled out of fear and confusion, kicking his legs and waving his arms frantically, hoping to get himself down. But it was no use as he stayed locked in one place. The light grew brighter and the fog got thicker.
Then…a voice broke through the frightening ordeal.
"Do not be afraid, child." A woman's voice drifted softly into his ears. Oddly, just from hearing the serene tone of it, it lightly calmed him down. But it still didn't help but make him afraid of whom it belonged to.
"What? Who…who are you? What is this?" Zak asked, looking up the light, the source of the voice coming from there.
"I have heard your call. To be different. To experience a new life." It spoke, her words flowing in a smooth and gentle tone, "I am here to grant you your request. You have a good heart in you, child. The northern lands will need your help."
Zak blinked at her words. His wish really worked? But not only that, but someone or…something, had heard him? And what did she mean that the 'northern lands' need his help?
"What? Wait a sec', what do you mean? I thought it was just-!" Before he could continue further with his questions, bright blue whisps of light began to envelope his body, swirling around his limbs and face.
"There is no time for me to explain. I cannot stay in this world for much longer." The female voice said once more. But as the lights around began to grow brighter, Zak could feel an odd and calming feeling come over him as his eyes began to droop from the energy wafting through his body.
"Who…who are you?" He asked.
He was only met with silence. But before he closed his eyes, the voice spoke once more.
"My wings are the night sky. I am the sun that lights the day." It said, before finishing.
"I am…Nocturna."
Upon finishing, the wisps of light began to swirl faster and much brighter around the young man, to the point of engulfing him in a cocoon of light.
The cocoon began to emit a high pitched sound as it slowly started to shrink down smaller and smaller. It kept shrinking until it was only the size of a baseball. As the sound slowly disappeared, the cocoon set itself down on the log where Zak had been sitting minutes before. The orb separated into several strands of spiritual light, revealing the young man who was inside.
Only…he was no longer human.
"Tom, please tell me I wasn't the only one who saw that!" A woman exclaimed as she shined her flashlight in the direction where a large light had suddenly formed and disappeared. Her partner, Tom, followed close behind her, adjusting his glasses as he switched on his own light.
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't and thought I was seeing things, Amanda, but…I did." He said breathlessly, partially shaken from the strange phenomenon.
"And that fog! It just came out of nowhere! And as soon as it appeared, it was gone!" The woman, Amanda, said as she stepped over twigs and hidden rocks. She was of a short and thin build, her brunette hair tied in a ponytail. Tom was a bit taller, short cut hair and a thicker build.
"What do you think it was?" Tom asked, trying his best to swat away lose and low hanging branches.
Amanda shrugged her shoulders, having never seen such an event happen before, "I don't know. But I want to see if anything is still around." She said, finally reaching the clearing where the light had appeared. The two shone there flashlights around the area. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Nothing burned. Nothing strange. Everything seemed normal.
"Huh," The woman huffed softly, "I don't see anything. Do you think it was just some sort of...natural event?"
"Amanda?" Tom called, the woman turning to him with a curious look, "Come here." He then whispered, gesturing with his free hand to come over to him. Furrowing her brow, she trudged over and knelt down beside him, and looked at what he found.
She gave a small gasp when she saw a bat lying flat on the bark.
Tom carefully placed his light onto the trunk and picked up the little animal into his hand. He was careful not to move it too much.
"Poor little guy," He whispered softly, "He must've been too exhausted to roost properly." He said, holding his hands out to Amanda so she could get a look at the small critter.
"It's still breathing." The woman confirmed, gently stroking a finger over the bats head, "Do you think its hurt?"
"I don't know." Tom shrugged, but got to his feet, cupping the bat in his left hand as he took out a handkerchief. Bundling it up he carefully placed the bat onto it, which instinctively seemed to latch onto it, but never woke up. Amanda couldn't help but smile at how cute it looked as it slept.
"Let's take him back to the shelter." Tom finally spoke, "Maybe a little bit of warmth and food will help his little guy get back to normal."
"Yeah, I think that's a good idea." The woman responded, both of them getting up and heading back to their truck. The man opened the rear door and set the bat down inside a medium-sized cage, with more blankets making a large nest inside, in case it woke up. It was only a precaution so the little animal wouldn't hurt itself if it tried to fly around inside the truck. After making sure it was safe and wouldn't bump around too much, Tom closed the cage and got into the driver's seat. Amanda got into the passenger's seat, buckling up as the engine revved to life.
"What species do you think it is?" She asked, "It's almost the same size as a silver-haired, but it's bigger and the wings are much larger."
Tom shrugged as he did his seatbelt, "I'm not sure. It's not a southern breed, for sure. Otherwise, it wouldn't have fit in my hand so easily." Shifting the gear to 'drive', he looked at Amanda briefly, "After we get back to the shelter we can try and find out what type of bat he is."
A few hours later…
"He couldn't roost on his own. Never left the blanket when they put him back on it. Grania, do you think he's hurt?" A male voice whispered. Sounding concerned and curious. It sounded like it belonged to a teenager.
'Who..who is that?' Zak thought as he slept, shifting lightly as he heard another one speak. This one sounded like a girl.
"I don't think so, Nuri. He nearly slipped off the branch when they tried, but, I don't think he's been hurt in anyway. He didn't latch on like we always do. They barely caught him in time when he fell." It said, carrying a tone of pity and worry.
Zak stirred softly, clutching what felt like a blanket tightly. He was so tired. Who was talking?
"If he can't even latch on by instinct, he's like a newborn pup all over again. And I'm not looking forward to babysitting a bat who can't even roost by himself. I say we just leave him alone to figure it out himself when he wakes up." A more gruff and gravelly tone cut in. From the sound, it must've been a middle-aged man. A very grumpy one at that.
"Alden! Don't be cruel!" The same girl spoke again, speaking in a shushed and scalding tone, like she knew that Zak was trying to sleep, "If he has a head injury like I do, we have to try and help him any way we can. Right, Aga'?" She said, but the last part was aimed at someone else. Whoever this, 'Aga' was, remained silent.
He groaned and buried his face into the soft surface he was laying on. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? He wanted to sleep! Too many voices talking at once.
The older voice scoffed, "Cruel? I'm just speaking what's on my mind. If you want to help him, fine. But leave me out of it."
There was a few seconds of silence before the other male, probably 'Nuri', spoke up, "How long do you think he'll be asleep?"
"Shhhh! Try not to be too loud." The voice, who he assumed was 'Grania', whispered, "He'll probably wake up when he's ready. Come on, guys. Let him have his rest."
Finally, there nothing but quiet. Zach let out a heavy sigh, yawning quietly as he made himself comfortable. Whatever he was sleeping with, it was warm and soft.
'Hrrmph…finally…some peace and quiet.' He thought in relief. Reaching down, he pulled up the blanket that covered him and curled up lightly, bringing his legs up underneath himself.
It felt rather…leathery. Despite that, it was warm and he liked it.