A/N: Echo, Shane, Ceera, Wolf, Mirage, and Brain are mine. But the idea of mutant bird kids is James Patterson's. Also, I had a healer in my Flock before JP had one in Fang (not a huge, overwhelming spoiler. I know that from the excerpt and if you're a diehard MR fan you know that too). So yeah. I hope you enjoy R&R please!

Chapter 1

Shane

Since Echo was shot, we decided to lie low. Staying in Southwood puts us in danger of being found again, but we've been running for too long and we need a rest.

Echo was shot protecting Brain. Brain is seven and he is a budding Einstein. The kid could win Nobel Prizes. One bullet punched into her left wing joint right where it meets her shoulder, one almost went through to her heart, nicking the aorta on the way, and one more to her spinal chord. She was paralyzed and bleeding to death before Wolf and I had killed the bastards who had shot her. But Brain was safe and according to Echo that's all that mattered. If it hadn't been for Ceera—the dark eyed, dark haired angel in our Flock—Echo would have been dead, or worse…paralyzed for life. Though I would rather see Echo paralyzed from neck down than dead, Echo would rather be dead because if Echo couldn't fly she might as well be dead.

After Ceera removed the bullets and fixed Echo as best she could, we hid in the Southwood Forest, keeping out of sight of the predators in the sky and on the ground. Echo was still unconscious but she was stable and with the help of Ceera's gift she wasn't paralyzed. Ceera is only nine and can only do so much with her gift, but she saved Echo. Ceera couldn't fully fix Echo's injuries. She used most of her gift healing Echo's paralysis and her aorta. Echo's healing well but she's prone to exhaustion—near death experiences will do that to you—and her wing is stiff. While Echo is out of commission I am Flock leader, which means I give the orders. My only order is stay put and stay out of danger. Since we can't spend the time it takes Echo to heal sitting on our butts I got us enrolled in the local high school and elementary school. Southwood High and Southwood Elementary School. Actually, I didn't do anything. Mirage did. Mirage is thirteen. She's short with blond ringlets and big Bambi eyes. That's her usual look. She can look like anyone in the world.

It's not so much that she changes how she looks, it's more like she changes how everyone sees her. Like a mirage in a desert. Hence the name, Mirage. Mirage made the vice principal at Southwood High think she's our mother. Our adoptive mother since no mirage in the world could cover the different looks in our group.

I'm the eldest at sixteen years of age, but Echo's the leader. I'm fine with that. You don't need to be stronger, or older, or smarter than everyone else to be the leader. You just have to be a leader. I don't know how to explain, but Echo's the leader and I'm not. And I'm fine with that. I'm tall with spiky brown hair and brown eyes. Ceera and Mirage have dubbed me 'hot'. My wings range from mahogany brown to a dusty gold.

Echo is fifteen. She's about 5' 7'' with white-blond hair, green eyes, and faintly tanned skin. It's an odd combination of colors, but what about us is normal? Her wings are white with streaks of gold.

Then there's Mirage who looks like an angel in her usual guise though she's anything but. Her wings are a soft grey-color mixed with fluffy white. Her twin brother Wolf is taller with the same blond hair and brown eyes. His wings are stormy grey with steely black mixed in. They are both thirteen.

Ceera, who's nine, has black hair and black eyes. She appears Chinese, but since none of us knows our parents, we can't be sure. As I said before, she's the angel. And it's not just because she can save lives. She is sweet and kind and gentle. And wise. She always has philosophical things to say. Her power is the best in our Flock. Since it's a competition between looking like whoever you want and curing cancer—Ceera probably could—Ceera's power is the best. Echo doesn't like us speaking about powers. She hates the Institute and everything it stands for. She also hates it having an effect in our lives even after we escaped it. She doesn't have any powers—that she's told us about. Unless being a badass at flying is a power.

And last but not least there's Brain. His name is pretty self explanatory. He's small with messy black hair and blue eyes. His eyes are magnified by the classic nerd glasses that he wears. They were the only ones within our price range. And Brain desperately needed them or he would fly into an airplane. His wings are black. He would seem menacing if he wasn't seven, wearing geeky glasses, and still had pink baby cheeks.

So that's our Flock. Some sick person thought it would be funny to make us into human-bird mutants. We showed them how funny it was when we blew up their institute in Louisiana almost a year ago. Since then we've gotten across the country, but they want us back. They sent these assassins guys after us that are a blend of human and panther. They are fast. Four of them ambushed us outside Southwood. We were landing behind a gas station to re-fuel when they hit us. Even with our hawk-eyes we didn't see them coming. But after the initial shock of seeing Catmen pouncing on us, we were evenly matched. Until they brought out their guns. We took cover fast, but Brain—for all his IQ—got stuck figuring out where to hide. So Echo tackled him and used herself as a human shield. I got pretty pissed when I saw the blood spreading over her new T-shirt. It had cost us almost fifteen dollars of our hard earned cash. So I took the Catmen down with the help of Mirage and Wolf. Mostly Wolf. Mirage can't become a body builder, she can only look like one. Wolf is the fighter in our group. He's better than I am. It has something to do with what they did to him. My guess is wolf DNA mixed in with the bird and human. Whatever the reason, Wolf is a killer.

That was close to three days ago. Mirage got us enrolled at the high school and our first day is tomorrow. We're living in an abandoned cabin not far from the school. It's Utah, there are cabins everywhere. And mountains. Echo loves that. There are three things Echo loves: flying, mountains, and our Flock. Four actually: she loves killing anything the Institute sends after us.

Ceera and Mirage are really excited for school. I am so not excited even though it was my idea.

Echo is down right against it.

"How are we supposed to keep them safe when we're all in different classes?" Echo is hell-bent on protecting our Flock. Even though there was an elementary school and a high school, Southwood was so small that classes were held in the same buildings. Essentially it was K through 12th. I tried explaining that to Echo, but she wouldn't listen. She never does. But I'm in charge so I give the orders. Not a job I would take willingly.

Echo finally saw reason and agreed to the plan that was going to happen whether or not she agreed to it. She took Mirage ad Ceera shopping for clothes so we wouldn't go to school in the same outfit day after day. I stayed in the cabin with Wolf and Brain. We had stolen our hard earned money from a gas station. Ceera had not joined in. I was scared she would tell us we would burn in Hell for holding up the gas station with fake guns. Maybe we wouldn't since they were fake guns, but still we would soon be juvenile delinquents if we kept up this lifestyle. Maybe getting an education would straighten us out. If not, at least we would know the 40—I mean 50 states of the United States of America.

Echo entered the cabin at that moment.

"But I really liked the flip flops," Ceera whined. Yes, even angels whine.

"But we really don't have the money for those flip flops. Unless you want to hold up another gas station," Echo said. Ceera's cheeks flush a bright red. Mirage snickered. I looked at Echo. She looked worn out.

"Mirage, take our bag to our room. Wolf, here's yours, Brain's, and Shane's clothes. Shane, here's food." Echo passed around the shopping bags and fell on her stomach on the moth eaten couch with a sigh of exhaustion. I knew better than to ask her if she was okay. Instead I went about sorting the food into the cabinets.

"Brain, how's the electricity coming. I have some perishables that need to be refrigerated," I said. Brain looked up from the fuse box that he was studying.

"The fuses are all intact. I'll check the wires," Brain said, adjusting his glasses as he left the cabin. That left only Echo and me in the cramped living room/kitchen/dining room. She hadn't moved since she lay down on the couch. I think she was asleep. I found detergent in the bag and put it on the washer-drier. After I put the food away I went over to the couch. Echo was wearing battered blue jeans, worn sneakers, a hoody, and a tank top. She had been wearing the same outfit for a while. Thankfully we had all taken showers recently. With freezing cold water since the heating wasn't on. Our clothes hadn't taken showers however. I could smell blood and sweat clinging to Echo's clothes. Her blood and her sweat.

I leaned down and pulled the jacket off her shoulders. She didn't move. I slid the jacket down as far as I could without disturbing her and removed the bandage from the bullet hole in the center of her back. It was the only one I could look at without taking Echo's shirt off. Her shirt covered her wings, but I could see them straining the fabric. The wound would leave a scar, but it was healing nicely. Each day Ceera checked on it to make sure and helped it along a little with her gift. I replaced the bandage and pulled Echo's jacket back over her shoulder. Just then Brain appeared in the door way.

"I fixed the wires. Is the power on?" he asked. I glanced up from Echo as the house came alive. The refrigerator hummed quietly and the lights flickered on.

"Yep," I said, moving away from Echo's side and into the kitchen, "I'll make some dinner." Echo sat up at that moment, yawning and pulling her jacket tighter around her.

"What's for dinner?" Brain asked.

"Echo got instant meals, lots of instant meals," Shane said.

"When you become a great cook, I'll get you real food, but for now that's all you get," Echo said, slowly working her shoulder. I grinned as I took out seven instant meals—we could make more if we needed to, which we probably would—and popped them in the microwave.

"What did the cashier say when you came over with almost fifty instant meals?" I asked, punching in the numbers on the microwave and turning back to Echo. I hadn't noticed her spread her wings. She kept them tucked in close, but they almost filled the small room. She was rotating her left wing, trying to work pass the stiffness in the joint. The feathers shown faintly in the light cast by the flickering bulb. I couldn't take my eyes off of them.

"She asked me if I was stocking up for Armageddon," Echo said, smiling. I laughed. The buzzer on the microwave went off and I pulled out the instant meals. Echo folded her wings and called the Flock into the dinning room. Ceera came bounding out of the girl's room. She was dressed in a supper small skirt and a light blue tank top.

"Do you like it?" she asked twirling around to give us a view from every angle. Wolf grinned at her from where he lounged at the dinning room table.

"Cute," he said. Wolf was not a boy of many words. Brain glanced up at Ceera then back at his instant meal. Mirage skipped into the room, her curls bouncing. She wore a t-shirt, skinny jeans, and pink All Stars.

"We got them today. We're going to wear them to school," she explained as she sat at the table. Ceera sat next to her. I sat across from Echo with Wolf and Brain on my right.

"Did you get me anything with sparkles? You know how much I love sparkles," I said, grinning across the table at Echo.

"I got you a pink leotard and a tutu," Echo said with a half smile. We laughed. After dinner Echo called a family meeting. We sat around the fireplace. Echo settled herself between me and Wolf.

"So, tomorrow we start school. I don't know whose brilliant idea that was," she added under her breath. I rolled my eyes toward the ceiling. "Which means," she continued in a louder voice, "we will be separated for a good part of the day. Wolf and Mirage are in the same grade. So are Shane and I. Brain, Mirage explained to the vice principal that you're smart for your age"—understatement of the year—"and she agreed to move you up to Ceera's grade. I want you guys to stick together. Okay? We'll eat lunch together and meet up after school. No sports." Mirage let out a cry of protest. "Mirage," Echo said sharply. Mirage quieted down. "Now we need names." Ceera and Mirage started babbling at once. Echo raised an eyebrow and they quieted down immediately. "Our last name…what was it again,

Mirage?"

"Montana," Mirage said.

"So you can make yourself look like Hannah Montana? I don't think so." Mirage pouted. "Is it really Montana?" Echo asked.

"No, it's Cyrus," Mirage said. Echo sighed loudly, but she grinning. We had been on the run for a year and Mirage still knew who the teen pop stars are. The sad thing is, so

do I.

"It's Montgomery!" Mirage said. Ceera laughed.

"Alright, Montgomery. We need…ah…normal names."

"I'm Marissa!" Mirage said.

"I'm Cassidy!" Ceera said. Echo looked from Wolf to Brain. Wolf quirked an eyebrow. Echo pursed her lips. Wolf frowned. Echo narrowed her eyes. Echo won the silent exchange.

"Fine I'll be Kevin," Wolf muttered.

"And you Brain?" Echo asked.

"Um…Albert?" We all started laughing. I barely had enough breath to ask Echo, "What about you?" Echo was still laughing when she said, "Emma."