Freedom, why is it such a strong word, almost a synonym of love and just barely not. Wars have been sparked at the mere passing glimmer of hope, that it might possibly be obtained, and today we live in the illusion that we have it, and that we want it. Every day we are governed, we have things we have to do, things we must do. From the most simple of things that we realize control us, eating, drinking, sleeping. To the most obscure of things, like our jobs, school, and money; sure we choose our jobs, but it is drilled into our heads that we needed to get a good one or our life will be unpleasant one. Thus even though we choose to get one it is controlled that we want to.
Most of us don't even choose to go to school but some want to, we are forced by our desire to be better than another, because that's what's been told to us, if we have good grades you're smart and smart people are better than not as smart people. Either that or we are forced by our parents who had the same smartersmart theology drilled into them by the time they were 4.
Last but not least, money. Our whole lives are determined by money, don't pretend that it isn't and don't mantra yourselves because you know it is. How would you eat without money, sure you could grow food you say, do you know how much food you eat a day? Can you really grow all of that? You could go live on a farm, but don't we all want to be better than simple farmers? The farmers do too. You couldn't drink without money, where would you get the water? Streams? Polluted. Rivers? Polluted. Lakes? Polluted. We are both living in the age of the greatest enlightenment and also the great denial, the illusion of control has been so integrated into society that the people who thought of it no longer need to teach it to us, they have us doing it for them.
Sure I sound like a socialist pig right now but let me tell you something Humanity isn't ready to control all of our own choices, some people are too stupid, some people are too greedy, some people are too emotionless, and the people who are actually ready don't think they are. So this story begins, after this little rant in a little demonstration of how freedom before it's time is not as good as it might seem.
By the time me and Jewel have pulled the gargantuan rock to a high enough altitude to smash the chain that we were trapped in and I hooked it in place my entire beak felt like someone snapped it off, then stuck it back on with burning super glue. I mean sure I did a lot of physical labor back in the bookstore with Linda but this was a whole new level or excruciating, I tried to look on a more opportune side. Sure my mouth hurt but hey once I obliterate this chain I can finally go back to Linda, back to our little bookstore in Minnesota, back to my non-assuming little life where the worst thing that could possibly happen to me is a snowball not hitting me. Sure sometimes it's a little lonely but Linda is there for me. That has always been enough for me before and it will be enough for me now.
Jewel interrupted my thoughts, asking me something. Oh yeah Jewel, I… don't really know what to think about her, she's beautiful and strong willed… but do I love her? What reason do I have to love her? Do I even want to love her? I just met her… and I'm not so sure that I should put all my hopes and dreams onto a bird I've just met, even if she is the last of our species. Besides that I miss Minnesota, I miss my old life that I had had just the day before, and I want to be sitting on the window ledge sipping cocoa as the snowflakes dance by the glass, but most of all I miss Linda.
I never asked for this…
"Blu!" Jewel screamed, boxing the side of my head, but lightly. I could tell she was angry, and I had to give her credit for how well she was handling being tied to a flightless me. "I asked you, are you sure this is going to work?"
"Positive." I said, nodding, as I stepped outside of my pessimistic mood. "Check my math."
On the ground I had estimated the strength of the steel locks on the chain and with a standard formula for gravity and force and figured out the mass and the altitude needed of the rock to shatter it. I spread a proud wing over my work.
"Oh.. yeah… that's comforting. Thank you."
I frowned, but it quickly went away. I'm not the average bird when it came to sciences and calculations… years of inhabiting in a book store will certainly do that to you, I understood why Jewel dismissed my formulas.
"Look let's just get this chain broken." She continued.
"Yeah, then we can go find Linda." I said my face brightening at the thought.
"No you can find Linda." I frowned again. "Once this chain is off, I'm going to go back to being free in the jungle. Deal?"
I inwardly shudder at the thought of living in the deep, dark, and malicious jungle... but then again, it was fair. She was born here, she has been here all her life, why should she trust humans if they took her away from here. Quite frankly I'm a bit cautious of the bird doctor myself… he's… a strange one.
"Deal!" I said shaking her wings and trying to ignore the lightning flashes that travelled from her touch into my heart and onto my spine. I instead just pretended to be really excited.
"Ready?" I asked her.
"Always ready."
I plucked the vine and sent it shooting towards freedom.
The rock fell with a crash that deafened my ears, blinded my eyes and congested my nostrils with dust. A faint clinging sound of metals clacking together could almost be heard over the tremendous amount of commotion.
As I coughed and tried to clear my body parts of dust I looked around. Jewel was standing just a few feet from me looking at me with murderous contempt… what did I do wrong? Immediately I tried to get to my feet only to have my claws pulled out from under by the chain. What? This time I stood up more carefully and with complete and utter dismay realized that even though I was more than sure that the chain was broken, both parts of it were still trapped under the rock.
DAMN! How could I not think about this? No, no, no, stay calm, you got to think, how are you going to get out of this one?
"Ugh, you idiot! Now we're even more trapped than before." She pointed an accusing wing-tip at me.
My first thought was to say that it wasn't my fault… but the current situation was completely and utterly caused by my actions. Guilt washed over me. All I've ever been doing since I met her is shackle her, and shackle her to a bigger shackle... if I'm so smart then how come I'm so stupid?
What was left of my already shattered demeanor completely vaporized and I crawled as far away from Jewel as possible and began to sob into my wings. The events of the last 24 hours coming out in torrent of unmanly tears, everything I do turns into shambles… Chloe and Alice were right, I'm just a pathetic nerd-bird, just a head full of facts and nothing else.
Suddenly Jewel sat down beside me I could hear the chain as it slithered on the ground. I covered my head with my wings ready for a beating… but she didn't do anything. I lowered one wing and peeked out, she didn't look angry anymore.
"Come on. Stop crying." She whispered as if she were comforting a child… it was soothing, and it was much needed comfort too.
Common sense not reacting fast enough, I wrapped my wings around her and hugged her. Feeling her warmth and the beat of her heart against mine I could feel my spirit soar... but it won't soar for much longer it I was DEAD! My eyes darted opened quickly as I realized what I was doing and I scrambled away again. What was I thinking! I thought. NOW she's going to hit me!
But no burst of outrage came from her. No scowl on her face. She just looked surprised… and… and… it's a good look on her… NO! NO! NO! I screamed at myself. Are you trying to kill yourself?
...
Before we could speak again something rustled in the distance.
"Uh… Jewel. I think something's watching us." Fear quickly dispelling any previous discomfort.
Jewel snapped her head in the direction of the sound. For a second nothing happened, but then the grass rustled again and out popped a little tiny toucan chick. Jewel relaxed instantly as t he little chick ran up to jump into her arms. Giving the little guy a quick squeeze she turned her head to me, with a smirk on her face.
"I don't think he can hurt us."
As soon as the words left her mouth the little toucan shouted a quick "INTRUDERS!" into the sky. Prompt, over a small hill a storm of toucan children appeared, each dive bombing towards us like a bunch of kamikaze planes. After the first moments of painful impact, each proceeded to either kick or jump all over us, and one taking a painful bite of my feathers.
Just as I thought I might faint from the hurt a voice cried out my salvation.
"Hey what's going on here? Get off them!" A larger older version of the chicks shouted from a tree hollow a yard or 2 away, as soon as he made his presence known the chick diverted their attention to him and with a cry of "DADDY!" flew to swarm him. I can't say I wasn't relieved.
"Manuel, Sophia listen to me!"
Me and Jewel got back to our feet dusting ourselves off for the second time today.
"Precious aren't they?" She said.
"Yeah kids. 17 of them and 1 on the wa- HEY HE"S NOT A MARRACA STOP SHAKIN' HIM!... huh, they're giving me gray feathers!" He told us. "So you love birds going to carnaval?
"Lovebirds… oh no, no!-" Jewel said.
"-we're more like acquaintance birds." I cut in.
"Not even that we're more like chained together birds?" She said picking up the broken chain."
"And as of this morning we became caught-under-a-rock birds…" I signed looking down at my feet.
"Now, come on sto- Ow! Right in the ey- okay do you want me to call your mother?"
"NO!"
As if some invisible switch had being thrown, at the mention of their mother the chicks fled. Oh… their mother can't be that horrible can she? I thought to myself.
"Hey, can you help us move this rock?" I asked.
"Hmmm… alright come on." He said. "I'll help."
He walked towards the side of the rock and placed his wing on it, as if examining it.
"Alright on a count of three. One… two… THREE!"
On the three both me and Jewel and the toucan pushed up on the rock, the under used muscles in my wings shaking from the effort. We couldn't move it.
"Come on one more try! One… two… THREE!"
I pushed with all my might, lending power from my legs and chest, the stone shifted.
"IT's MOVING! PUSH!"
With one last gargantuan push the stone shifted off of the smaller rock I had placed them on. I stepped back breathing heavily. Hey! We were free! I'd broken the chain! Now I ca-
"Wahoo!" Jewel let out a great woop of joy, she zoomed into the sky, air warping in the place she had been. I stare up at her. I saw how happy she was, and a wave of realization hit me. She looks so… happy. I thought. I can't believe I've kept her away from this.
I didn't look away until Jewel disappeared into the tree line. A strange sense of emptiness filled my stomach and my heart. I realized I'd never felt so lonely.
With the help of the toucan, whose name was Rafael, I managed to make it back to Linda without hassle. My excellent memory useful in navigating the streets of Rio. Back on the plane I was placed in a cage close to the window. Looking down from the skies the floating clouds reminded me of Jewel flying high and happy.
Minnesota was never the same, Linda was still there for me, my old life was the same, the snowflakes danced like they always do but the next 3 years flew by like a blur. Try as I might I couldn't stop thinking about Jewel. Life wasn't the same when you realized what you were missing.
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