Note: I apologize to those of you readers who may have noticed that I have stopped putting those insightful little titles at the beginnings of each update. I stopped separating them by chapter a long time ago as I have found that one can only come up with so many witty titles before their brain blows a crankshaft. I apologize for this. Also I would like to give Kudos to another writer who hails from the long neglected Silverwing Section of this site. Oemi (Pronounced OH-MAY) is an extraordinarily talented fellow writer who has written a compelling novella (currently in progress) which is a banquet for the mind and the literary pallet. Her story makes me strive to match her level of writing prowess. In short Oemi, you have writing abilities, that few our age seem to exhibit. I can only hope that you continue to exercise this miraculous gift. Saying this, please note that I am writing another story AT the same time as I am writing this one. So I am balancing two DIFFERENT story lines as I am writing this… Yeah.
Shiva, Aries and Sago hung in her roost. All were silent. Sago looked at Shiva with a mixture of fear and relief. "Are you sure he's dead?" Shiva nodded. After a moment Sago said, "We've got to go. If anyone heard the commotion, considering the council's mentality they'll probably have you tired for murder…despite the evidence." Shiva said, "Let's go now, it'll give us a head start." Sago let go of the perch and dropped through the entranceway. Aries dropped next hovering just below Shiva, worry creasing his face. She unfurled her wings and dropped, her teeth gritting as the cut shifted. "How bad does it hurt?" She blinked at him. "You seriously don't want me to answer that." She swore angrily and the trio headed toward the exits. It was feeding time, and the colony was deserted, although a few bats did pass, staring intently at Shiva's wound. "What happened to her?" one asked, and Aries snapped, "Someone seriously pissed her off. Do you want to fall in that category?" There was no response, due to the fact that the bat had decided that the best course of action would be to leave the injured one alone. They left the colony without incident, but Aires noticed that Shiva's breathing had become ragged, labored. They got a few hundred wingbeats away from the colony, when they had to rest.. Shiva said, "Where can we go?" Sago's face was bleak. "Truly? With your injury, any movement we make will be slow. If you continue to ooze blood as you have been doing, any bat or bird or beast within a 1000 wingbeats will be hot on our trail." Suddenly a voice rang out.
"My name is Serafina. I wish to provide you with assistance Shiva." Sago's neck cracked as her head whipped around. "I am a human, who has been watching your colony for a few weeks. I have dedicated my life to proving the sentience of animals. I…heard the exchange between you and your father and I wanted to help you in any way I could. I ask of you to trust me. That is all. I live in the city, about a mile north of here. Look for the apartment building with a bright light on top. The 3rd window on the third level is my apartment. This window will be open. I hope that you get this message…" The message stopped. And then began to repeat. Sago exclaimed, "It's a recording of some sort…" She looked at the base of the tree and illuminated a thimble sized speaker imbedded into it's bark. She turned toward the skyline. Then she turned back toward Shiva who smiled weakly. "See Aries? Told you help would come to us…although I'd hoped for better circumstances."
Aries looked at the skyline. "We're breaking every single rule in the book by doing this…" He looked at Shiva, who's head drooped from weariness. "But go we must…" The trio took off and headed for the city at a slow pace, Shiva's wound slowing the entire group down. Aries offered desperate encouragement as they flew, goading Shiva onward, wingbeat by wingbeat. The building rose up through the darkness, glowing with light. On the third row of windows, one was dark. Sago could make out the outline of a woman in the window, looking intently at the skyline. The trio approached, and the human turned a light on to a bare minimum, then turned toward an odd machine, which glowed brightly and pressed a button. The human spoke in low sonorous tones into a stubby implement. The glowing machine whirred and then: "You are the three, I assume?"
The voice was slightly fuzzy, with clicks and hisses, but nonetheless understandable. Aries was the first to speak. "Yes…You are Serafina?" Again, a slight pause, and then a low sound came out an emitter in the glowing machine. She smiled and nodded. Then as her eyes swept over the group she came to rest on Shiva. "My God…what happened to her?" Aries said, "I'll explain later, can you help her?" "Yes, but you'll need to come inside, I'll be better able to help with the proper tools." She saw the hesitation in their eyes. "She's in a lot of pain…I have things which can heal her. I ask you only to trust me." Serafina opened the screen door to her apartment and stepped inside, flicking the lights to their lowest setting. She cleared a space on a large table, then walked toward a closet, opening it and pulling out three suitcases each with symbols denoting her Green Cross affiliation. The Green Cross was a veterinarian elite core which had been issued the prerogative of protecting the species that still existed on the planet and on re-seeding any extinct members. Like a veterinarian variant of the Mayo Clinic. She took a sterilizer from the case and swept the blue beam across the table's surface, before pulling out a large antiseptic sheet and laying it down. Then she pulled four small discs from a plastic bag and depressed the buttons on each. She then placed them on the sheet, each at the table's four corners. Sago spoke, "What did you just do?" Serafina called to the laptop, "Engage sterilization field." and a shimmering green field enveloped the table's surface.
"These four discs are sterilization field emitters. Useful for operations when sterility is a necessity… " She walked over to a sink and washed her hands vigorously, rolling up her sleeves, as she did so, making sure to spread the surgical grade soap suds up her forearms. "Sterilization?" Sago said quizzically. Serafina continued, drying her hands and pulling on white gloves. "The removal of dirt, anything that can infect the patient. It's vital…" Sago nodded, struggling to understand. Serafina pulled out a few containers and cloths and lay them out neatly on the table. "I'm ready when you are Shiva." Shiva limped forward painfully, hovering over the edge of the table, uncertainty evident in her eyes. Aries spoke to her. "I'll be right here with you." He crawled under the sterilizer field. Shiva had to smile at his boldness. My God, he's more scared than I am. And yet she knew that he'd do it 1000 times over if he needed to. If she needed him to rather….
I will post more…Had to cut it short because my mother wanted to use the computer.