A Lost Bird Flies
As a child, he loved to watch the birds as they flew through the air. It was a way for him to escape, even for a moment, from the dread and nightmare that was his life. His parents shunned and hated him for his height, and his nurse treated him no better than a lowly dog that begged for scraps. But when Ilosovic watched the birds wheeling and plunging in flight, he would feel a thrill course through him. He was smart enough to realize he would never fly, but if he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine what it would be like to soar, to feel that elated and overjoyed with himself.
His play often consisted of him running up and down the paths of the large garden at Stayne Manor, his arms held out to his sides as he wheeled and plunged in imitation of the birds that flew overhead. He would also try his best to imitate their wild cries, which more often than not would bring about severe reprimands by his parents and a day of being locked in his room, with only his books for company. But even then, he would watch the birds from his window, envying them their freedom.
As a young man and soldier, he would often take a break from training to watch the birds soaring over Salazen Grum. There was one that he noticed over all the others. It was a small redbird, and newly fledged from the nest. Its flight was erratic at first, and Ilosovic realized that it must have been blown off course in a storm, because its feathers were sticking out every which way. But as he watched, the bird caught an updraft of wind and flew off, singing in joy-and for a brief instant, Stayne felt the same elation he had felt when young.
When the JubJub Bird came, that was the end of other birds coming near the palace. They seemed to shun it, as if they knew something that earthbound creatures could never sense. For years, the only bird Ilosovic saw was the hated JubJub. Rather than inspiring awe and amazement in him, the Bird inspired hatred and loathing. There was something…wrong with it. In the aftermath of his brutal attack, his hatred increased, and Iracebeth had to have him physically restrained to keep him from charging up to the Tower and ripping the Bird apart with his bare hands.
Over the years, as her poisonous personality slowly encroached on his mind, he began to forget his dreams of flying free. His mind and soul were chained, and he knew it was only a matter of time before he lost both.
When the Hatter escaped execution and Iracebeth released the JubJub, Stayne could barely keep himself from throwing his sword into the monster's gullet. He watched as the creature screeched and raged, as below her another monster wreaked bloody havoc on innocent people. He watched in sick rage as people ran, screaming. His soul felt as though it had been scorched to a cinder, and he felt the tentative grip on his sanity starting to slip.
The relief he felt when the Bird was finally flattened was quickly squelched when he was sent into Exile and chained to a screeching harpy. There was nothing living in the Outlands, and the silence pressed on him, choking and suppressive.
But then…he had been freed from his chains by Alannah, and she had set his heart and soul free, sending them soaring to heights he had never before experienced.
The lost bird had found his course.