Over the mighty and crashing sea of the Atlantic Ocean; a single raven flapped against the harsh currents of the wind with a bird sized satchel that carried various important and classified papers inside. The satchel was stretched over its back and was left hanging in the wind. The bag was more important than the messenger, as it was the nature of his line of work.
The messenger was a brown-necked raven with fifty-six centimeters in length. Its plumage was black but seemed to have been mixed with a faint purplish-blue color. However, its neck feathers were brown, as its name implied. Its feet, legs, and beak were a distinct black.
This raven had been traveling over the ocean for a while to deliver a special, high priority message. It was growing tired from the constant effort to fly but the sight of land from a distance was comforting.
It caught a lucky break when an updraft came and allowed the bird to glide across the sky without a single ounce of effort. Its wings relaxed as it finally stopped flapping. The wind brought a new sense of ease despite the pressing concerns of the situation that this messenger was barely aware of. All it focused on was that it had to reach its destination by a deadline but today was its last day.
Less than ten minutes passed before the coast of the avian's destination was right below him.
A sigh escaped the birds black beak, as it knew it was going to have to hurry and reach its target. With purpose, the raven dived dramatically downwards and spread its wings out just before it hit the reflective surface of the water. A startled fish that had been skimming the top jumped out of the blue depths and the raven managed to catch and swallow it without breaking speed.
There were boats docked near the harbor, which nearly got in its way, but it still managed to dodge and avoid smacking into sails, metal, and people that were aboard the ships and various sized boats. Just a few minutes and it would be at its goal.
Only recently had the raven's commanders found their specific target, whose activity had been low for more than four years. A message had been made from one of the "Top Guys" as most of this birds fellow workers liked to call them that was requested to be delivered at a certain date and time. The bird's time was almost up, too.
But if this bird wasn't tired...
The Central Park Zoo was experiencing a beautiful season. Autumn.
The bright orange, red, and yellow leaves that littered every spot on the ground were crunched on by the Zoo's visitors feet as they went from habitat to habitat too enjoy the performances the animals had to offer. The sky had delicate shapes of various clouds but none dared to cover up the sun. A gentle warm breeze blew by that wafted against Manhattan and would bring pleasant shivers up someone's spine, especially if they were lying out and basking under the warm sun. Trees were beautiful bursts of orange, as were the bushes, and the colors of autumn complimented the Zoo's look to make it a stunning sight to behold.
The Asian otter, Marlene, entertained visitors by flopping into her pool of water by using her stone, smooth slide. The lemurs were dancing like they had never danced before to various tracks of music and were constantly shaking their tails till they couldn't do it anymore. Of course that meant Julien kept at it and was forcing Maurice and Mort to go on. Not the most fun thing they've ever done but it got them some popcorn. Other animals were doing their own thing as well; like how Leonard slept through the beautiful day, Bada and Bing ate bananas and enjoyed their tire swing, and the chimpanzees enjoyed a good time with tea and newspapers when people weren't looking. They hadn't even thrown any waste at humans, which only made it a better day…for the humans.
Being in the middle of September brought these delightful conditions that seemed to perk up all the animals of the Zoo and Central Park. Even Joey seemed to be enjoying the promises the day had to offer. But this kind of day was the one that the penguins looked forward to every year.
The penguins smiled and waved and did do adorable antics that humans found to be irresistibly cute. They flipped into their pool of water, slid across the concrete island, blinked and batted their eyes, and even did little dances for their entertainment. All eight of the flightless birds were having a good day so far and that usual paranoia was drained away, for the time being, and was replaced with a sense of peace and warmth.
Another hour went by till the sound of the closing bell rang out when the metal chimpanzees struck the bell with their metal hammers.
The penguins waved in a goodbye gesture as the visitors reluctantly left the zoo with their children whining the whole time as they dragged them away. Alice still wouldn't crack a smile until everyone had left, who were really shoved out by her eagerness of the days end. She then locked up the Zoo gates and was more than happy to head home.
Amber breathed in the air and sighed contently with a soft smile appearing on her face when Alice finally closed and locked the gates. "What a great day...this is why autumn is my favorite season."
Skipper came up and casually put a flipper around Amber's shoulders. "Well it's a good day momma nature has given us."
"Sure is," Amber agreed and leaned against Skipper. They shared a soft look, a small moment between the two of them, until Private spoke up and questioned worriedly, "What's that?"
Amber and Skipper looked up, but they didn't have enough time to react before they were both bowled over by a raven. All three birds came into an awkward heap on the concrete island.
Sara winced. "That's got to hurt," she mumbled to Madison. The silent penguin nodded in agreement from beside her.
Skipper rolled over and stood up. He glowered at the stranger as it flapped off of Amber, who spat out various colored feathers.
The raven shook its body, causing its black feathers to become more ruffled then they already were. "I got to work on my landing," it muttered in an African accent; the tenor of its voice revealing it was male. "That was probably my worst yet."
Skipper helped Amber up while looking at the raven suspiciously when he noticed the satchel. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously. The flat-headed leader pulled Amber close, which made her roll her eyes and lightly shove him away, but Skipper didn't seem to really notice.
Kowalski intently examined the stranger while everyone else appeared confused except Flora, who seemed to freeze when she first laid her eyes on the new bird.
The raven looked at flat-headed penguin with much more friendliness then Skipper was offering. "I am afraid I cannot tell my name until I find who I am supposed to give this letter to." He opened his tiny satchel and cautiously pulled out a brown envelope. "I believe it is addressed to one of you penguins..." It was then that he noticed Flora staring at him. He stiffened with wide eyes that had some of the most dilated pupils they have ever seen. "I cannot believe it...is that really you?"
It was in that instant that Flora ran up and gave this stranger a tight hug and spun him around while exclaiming, "It's you! It's you! It's really you!"
Kowalski felt something stir inside of him when he watched the two through narrowed eyes. He thought it might have been jealously, but he tried to ignore it, although it was hard to ignore when this bird hugged his girlfriend back too tightly then he would have preferred. The raven started to talk to her so quickly in a different language that Kowalski had no idea how to follow their conversation. After some exchanged words, Kowalski identified that they were speaking Arabic.
Private was the first to say anything. "Do you two know each other then?"
The two stopped talking and glanced at each other. Both responded, "Yes."
Flora then grinned widely and gestured to the raven. "This is my old friend!" she exclaimed. She tried to contain her excitement but failed miserably. "His name is Tupac." She made a gesture with her flipper and said, "We go way back! Right when I still had my down feathers." She gave him another squeeze which he eagerly returned.
Amber narrowed her eyes as she examined Tupac and something seemed to click inside of her. Her eyes lit up with realization. "Hey, aren't you that bird that knocked into me when I was out in the ocean?"
Tupac smiled good-naturedly as he came to a same realization. "Good to see you to," he chuckled and gripped the letter tightly. His expression lit up as he remembered what he had come to the Central Park Zoo for. "Right...is there a..." he trailed off as he looked at the envelope briskly, "penguin named Amber here?"
The silver female folded her flippers behind her back, puffed out her chest, and looked at Tupac like she already had authority over him. "That'd be me."
Tupac sighed in relief and handed her the letter. "Best read this then," he told her. "Urgent letter you know."
Amber rubbed the back her head awkwardly with her flipper while the other appendage tightly held the envelope that carried the urgent message. "Yeah...I can't read," she admitted in an embarrassed tone. Now she regretted never taking up Flora's reading lessons she provided to Sara. Not that she was going to admit it out loud.
Tupac shook his head in disapproval but kept his thoughts to himself. "That is not good," he told her frankly, which made her glare daggers at him, though he never meant to offend. "Best get someone to read that for you then."
Flora looked at Amber and said with a faint smirk, "I can read that for you."
"It's classified information," Tupac stated pointedly. "Only you are supposed to read it..." he trailed off, a meaningful look shared between him and his old friend. "But I trust Flora, as I hope you do as well." He tiredly flapped to the bar fence that went around the habitat and sat down, making him look plump as he watched them wearily.
"Right, right," Amber mumbled and subconsciously started playing with the envelope in her flippers. "Girls, go back down, except you Flora," she ordered.
Sara and Madison shared a look but reluctantly went down into the hidden HQ. Orders were orders...unfortunately.
Amber nodded to Skipper with a bitter-sweet expression. "You to Skippy. Take your team down."
Skipper narrowed his eyes at her, flicked his stare to Tupac, and then Amber again. Without taking his eyes off of her; he ordered, "Go back inside men." He made a gesture with his flipper, and they all grudgingly disappeared into the hidden underground headquarters, leaving only the three birds left.
"I'll talk to you later Tupac," Flora promised and grinned at him.
Tupac smiled genuinely and said, "I look forward to catching up."
An uneasy feeling nestled inside Amber's gut. She could tell that this raven, Tupac, had brought a lot of problems, even if he meant to or not. "Let's go to that janitor's closet near Alice's office," Amber instructed to Flora quietly. "There will be privacy there."
Flora nodded stiffly. A quick glance at Tupac and then she asked Amber, "Do you think he could stay with us for a while?"
The stare her leader gave her the impression that she didn't like her old friend. "No," Amber answered bluntly. "Skipper wouldn't like it, and personally, I don't either." And she was right.
The intellect shuffled her feet but nodded in acknowledgement. "Right," she murmured.
Amber sighed and ordered, "To the closet."
Both females hurtled expertly out of the habitat, Amber still carrying the envelope, and slid to the direction of the janitor's closet.
Tupac watched them till they were out of sight and, when they were; he flapped tiredly to the Zoo walls and pulled out a communication device that looked vaguely like a radio. "Anyone at base?" he spoke into it calmly after pressing a red button. There was only static. "This is Brown Raven in The Big Apple, anyone there?" There was still only static for a few more moments that made his muscles tighten in anxiety. He relaxed when he finally heard a familiar voice erupt from the machine.
"Brown Raven, have you delivered it?" a voice spoke, hardly any specification on what it was talking about but it was not necessary.
Tupac; however, knew what it meant and responded, "Yes. Have I met my requirements?" It was quiet for a moment as Tupac looked around wearily, resisting the urge to yawn.
"You have managed to get there in your requested time period, right, and the delivery is intact, correct?" the voice questioned from the device.
Despite the fact that he knew the animal on the other line couldn't see him; Tupac nodded. "Correct." He hesitated for a moment and remembered his old dear friend. "But...I think I may have to stay here for a little while longer."
There was a growl on the line. "You can't do that," it hissed. "You are supposed to report back to base!"
Annoyance ruffled Tupac's feathers. "I am aware of this, but I met a...old friend of mine."
For a moment, there was only silence. It then asked more softly, "Is it that one she penguin you're always ranting on about? The one from North Africa, right?"
Embarrassment rolled off the raven like giant pulsating waves. Did he talk about her that often? "Yes," he answered simply. He closed his eyes in self-punishment when he heard his voice crack.
"You're stirring up more trouble than you need too."
"I know."
A sigh escaped the animal from the other line. "Get back to base as soon as possible. I'll tell them that you encountered some problems or something. You know what? I really don't know; I'll come up with something on the fly."
"Thanks," Tupac said gratefully. "I owe you one."
A snort was heard from the communication device. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Keep on stacking them up, aren't I?" There was a hesitant pause. "Stay out of trouble, rookie."
The raven chuckled quietly. "I will."
"You better..."
Amber was tossing around various tools and objects that were in the closet and was looking over every single one of them closely but quickly. She had also locked up the room and blocked any possible way of someone listening in on them or entering uninvited, at least what she was aware of.
"You mean business don't you?" Flora said solemnly in more of a statement then a question.
Her leader snapped her gaze in her direction. "This is classified, top secret stuff!" Amber slid down the wooden part of a broom and landed lightly on the ground, in front of the flower loving penguin. "I barely trust you reading this for me." She added quietly in a thoughtful tone, "Maybe I should learn how to read..."
The female strategist looked at her sympathetically. "Well I could always teach-"
"I said maybe," Amber interrupted crossly. "I rather focus on the physical aspects of my life."
"Are you-?"
Amber interrupted once more. "Yes, I am sure. And yes, I am positively sure." She then commanded, "Now read whatever is in that envelope."
Flora sighed as she opened said object and took out a sheet of paper with symbols Amber couldn't read, though Flora could with ease. The genius opened her beak was stopped again from reading the letter out loud in the closet when Amber decided she wanted to make her final "quick" checks to see if there were spies or anything that could listen in on them, which Flora still thought was a little farfetched. She rolled her eyes in annoyance when she watched her leader run about for the final check before coming to a halt.
Amber finally stopped moving and waited in front of her second in charge, trying to catch her breath. "Read," she commanded.
The taller nodded. "It reads," Flora began and started to read the paper in front of her.
"Well it has been a while hasn't it? How many years has it been? I lost count. I'll skip the formalities and get straight to the point. My sources have finally found you after your years of inactivity. Never would have thought you would have ended up in a Zoo."
"I knew we shouldn't have had our pictures taken!" Amber interrupted again with a harsh snarl while curling her flippers into tight balls of anger.
Flora was used to Amber's active temper, so she wasn't as fazed by it like she would have been when they first met. There was a silent cue between them that told Flora to keep reading. So she did.
"I saw the other penguins in the picture next to you. Recruited some penguins for your own protection, or is it just because you need help on your crimes?"
Flora looked back at Amber, who wouldn't meet her eyes, and studied her carefully before continuing slowly.
"I think it's time you came out of the darkness and face every crime you've committed, starting with the death of my son..."
Flora trailed off there and was about to ask something, but Amber stopped her with a simple gesture.
Amber had paled beneath her feathers. She knew who this was now. Her body suddenly felt weak and everything seemed to have gotten cold around her. "Go on," she ordered weakly and visibly shivered as old memories crept up from their depths.
This tone caused Flora to swallow thickly with apprehension. This was something she wasn't supposed to hear, much less read. Still, she continued.
"If you don't come within two weeks after you get this letter then I will personally come to greet you myself. You do know I'm not the type to wait, so I suggest you hurry. Believe me when I say that I understand you have some new 'friends'. What a shame if something happened to them...don't disappoint me. The messenger will tell you where to go. Signed your old Commander, Tervel."
The female scientist stared at Amber worriedly when she did not react or say anything when she finished. "Amber?" she called out hesitantly. "Who's Tervel?"
No answer.
Amber felt part of her life flash before her eyes. Death, blood, betrayal, and that first spark of love that only ended up being crushed into a bloody pulp all came rushing back to her. Everything from the very first years of her life raced before her eyes, and she found herself silently laughing, crying, and howling in agony and anger. So many emotions came across her mind from the simple letter. She looked around wildly, her breathing suddenly becoming painfully labored.
"Amber?" Flora had set the envelope down on the floor. "Are you ok?" she asked worriedly and crept forward slowly.
The silver avian tried to say something but only a squeak came out. A lump formed in her throat that she couldn't manage to swallow. Her body convulsed on an emotion overload. It was so sudden... The ground flashed before her eyes and then everything went black.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OC's and the story I made. Otherwise, I would totally make Julien blow up or something.
I didn't think this chapter was going to be good but my good friend Daydreamer1412 helped out to make it much better. She's brilliant, and I owe the title to her, literally, Of Lies and Deceptions was her idea. She has good stories too, so ya might want to check them out, especially if you've watched Kaito Kid. Well I hope you like it so far, please review.
