Gone Batty II: Eclipsed
Chapter 23: Way Hay and Up She Rises
"I spy with my little eye something that is… tall."
"Tree…" Shade looked bored half to death while they flew over the treetops.
"You think you're so smart, huh?" Chinook challenged. "Well how about this! I spy-"
"Tree."
"Oh, come on!" Chinook exclaimed. "I didn't get to say anything!"
Shade rolled his eyes, "You didn't need to. You only ever spy one thing. Besides, you've had your turn. Give someone else a chance."
"I think I'll pass." Caliban said. He wanted nothing to do with their childish games.
"Me too," Barnabe agreed as they both flew ahead of the group.
"Fine, I guess I'll go next." Shade shrugged and began to search around for something that wasn't a tree. "I spy...something that is…" his eyes widened dramatically. "A giant bat!
"What?! Where?!" Chinook panicked and blindly flew into Barnabe who had halted. "Ahh! It's got me! The giant bat's got me!"
Shade laughed at Chinook and the blue-haired boy stared at him with astonishment.
Chinook scowled, realizing he had been played. "That wasn't funny, runt!"
"Yes it was," Shade chuckled before realizing that Chinook wasn't the only one who was glaring at him. "Oh, umm…" Shade looked chastised under Caliban and Barnabe's scrutiny. He cleared his throat, forcing away his laughter. "Sorry. I guess shouting that while we are in the jungle wasn't the best idea."
"No duh!" Chinook snapped.
Caliban growled. "I believe that's enough games for now. Unless you want me to leave you both here by yourselves."
"No, sir…" Both Chinook and Shade hung their heads. They watched as Caliban turned and continued to fly while muttering to himself. Chinook gave Shade one last glare before following after.
"We don't need you to turn into the bat who cried wolf." Barnabe scolded Shade directly in his face.
Shade winced with guilt. "I'm sorry Barnabe. I didn't mean to."
Barnabe's face softened a tad. "Look, I get you've got this whole rivalry going on over Marina, but now is not the time. Not when we're stuck in the middle of a carnivorous jungle."
Shade sighed as he flew side by side with Barnabe. "I know, I know… it's just… I don't know." He shook his head.
"You know but you don't know? Golly, that's some complex thinking you've got going on there," Barnabe cracked a joke. Even Shade couldn't help a twitch of his mouth.
"Heh, yeah. It's crazy. It's just Chinook really gets under my skin sometimes. I mean, he usually always does, but it's been getting worse."
"You're both growing up," Barnabe reasoned. "Trust me, you're not the only ones who start acting like doofuses around this age."
Shade snorted, "You mean you acted like this too?"
"Well," Barnabe grinned toothily, "I wouldn't put it in a past tense."
"I think I'm going to be sick…" Mercury was green in the face as they floated through the sewers. He was leaning over the side of their make-shift boat while Ariel patted him on the back.
Ulysses laughed as he steered them with a long wooden rod. "Not used to traveling by water, are ye laddie? Don't worry. Your stomach should steel up in a couple of hours or so."
"Hours?" Mercury groaned.
"If you're lucky. My second cousin Black Tooth didn't get his sea legs until a month out at sea. Twas one nasty time for him."
"A month?!" Mercury's eyes bulged before his body seized and he hurled over the side.
Marina cringed in sympathy while Ariel continued to pat his back soothingly, "There, there…it's not going to take us a month to get to the jungle." Ariel looked up at the rat hopefully, "Will it?"
"Nah," Ulysses shook his brown head. "Not if we take the shortcut, ma'am."
Mercury looked like he was about to cry. "Let's use the shortcut… please!"
"I guess it's better than flying all the way there," Marina looked worriedly at Frieda who was sitting pressed against the wall, her wings wrapped around her and her eyes closed.
"Now, now, what is with all the long faces?" Ulysses exclaimed. "This simply won't do. As captain of this boat, I can't have my sailors be down in the dumps. But worry not, I have the remedy for that." He let go of the steering rod, letting it trail behind them and he cleared his throat.
"Oh no…" Julius groaned. "Not this again."
"Oh boy, oh boy!" Constantine clapped his hands excitedly.
"What will we do with a drunken sailor? What will we do with a drunken sailor? What will we do with a drunken sailor? Early in the morning!"
Constantine joined in while Julius clasped his hands over his ears. "Way hay and up she rises. Way hay and up she rises. Way hay and up she rises. Early in the morning!"
Marina and Ariel stared at the two rats with surprise. Frieda merely smiled in amusement. As the rats sang, they wrapped their arms around each other's shoulder and swayed to the song back and forth, causing the boat to sway much to Mercury's devastation.
The song was so joyful, silly and catchy that Marina couldn't help but join in with the chorus, much to the rat's (except Julius's) delight. The sewer ride no longer felt dark and gloomy when the company was this much fun. During the song Ulysses steered them through various tunnels with little attention, as if he did this everyday.
They all laughed once the song came to a close, with the exception of Mercury and Julius (who rolled his eyes).
"Now that's more like it!" Ulysess placed his hand on a beaming Marina's shoulder. "I say, you've got the spirit of a sailor in ye, lassie!"
"I don't mean to put a damper on your spirits… but… aren't we drifting too fast?" Mercury managed to speak for once. He was half hanging limply out of the boat, staring at the murky water.
"Huh?" The bats looked and saw that Mercury was right. The water was racing. They looked forward and gasped. They were being carried towards pitch darkness where the water was disappearing. A waterfall!
Ulysses did not look worried one bit, however. Instead, he grabbed a piece of straw that was at his feet and bit it between his teeth. "Hold on, mateys! It's going to be one bumpy ride." He gripped the steering rod tightly.
Marina grabbed the edge of the boat for dear life as they went over. The bats screamed during the drop and Julius had to grab Mercury from falling overboard. And that's when it got really crazy. The tunnel swooped and and looped, turning into a full fledged waterslide. Ulysses was the only one who seemed to be having fun. He had a manic grin on and whooped loudly with exhilaration.
Left, right! Up, down! Mercury had practically emptied all of his stomach contents by this point. After one final waterfall, they landed into calmer waters. They were all soaked and with amazing luck, the boat was still floating upright.
"Well," Ulysses chuckled as he wrung the water from his tail, "that was refreshing."
"What in the name of Nocturna was that!" Ariel exclaimed angrily.
"That, my dear… was the shortcut," Ulysses said smugly. "I have just saved us a week's journey. I'd say we're probably halfway through Mexico by now."
"Woohoo! Let's do that again!" Constantine pumped his fists into the air.
"Frieda, are you alright?" Ariel fussed worriedly but Frieda waved her away.
"Fine, I'm fine, Ariel. Don't fuss."
Ulysses leaned over Mercury who was laying sprawled out on his back, "So… how are ye feeling, mate?"
Mercury blinked. He no longer felt nauseous. He got up and patted himself down, checking himself over. "Hey… I'm okay!"
Ulysses chuckled and leaned back on his steering rod. "Aye, a ride like that would fix anyone up."
Julius threw up over the side and everyone winced.
"Well… almost anyone."
Elliot, Orestes and Denise were resting in a large tree. The top of the trunk was a large platform while the thick branches curved upwards from the sides, creating a canopy of leaves above them. It was a good place for them to stop and talk.
"So let me get this straight," Denise paced back and forth on the platform, trying to absorb all of the information that was given to her. "What you are saying is that last year, Melody accidentally injected herself with a bat serum, turning her into a bat and then you all shipped her off to Canada thinking that she is one of your bats. Once you found out what you did, you went looking for her and turned yourself into an owl and met this Molestes-"
"Actually, my name is Orestes-" he tried to interject.
"Yeah, whatever," Denise brushed him off, too caught up in her thoughts. "And while you both were looking for Melody, the owls were trying to arrest her and her other bat friends while two giant vampires were trying to catch and eat them-"
"Vampyrum Spectrum. They're not actual vampires-" Elliot tried to correct.
Denise continued as if she didn't hear him, "But then you found her but then got separated a few more times before reuniting, Melody receives some magic necklace, you find Hibernatural-"
"Hibernaculum," both Orestes and Elliot said at the same time.
"-Get attacked by the giant bats, fight in an all out war, WIN that war, and then you and Melody turned back into humans and went home, the end." She stopped pacing and looked up at Elliot with wide eyes, "Have I gotten this all down right?"
"More or less," Elliot shrugged.
"So this isn't permanent?" Denise motioned to herself with her wings.
"Not unless I make a new cure," Elliot sighed, looking miserable. "I have managed to save us both with the owl serum, but the cure was destroyed in the explosion."
"Hmm…" Denise didn't look upset over it. The idea that Elliot could make a cure was enough for her. She twirled around a little, checking herself out. She wiggled her tail feathers, furled and unfurled her wings. Finally, she looked up expectantly and stretched out her wings, "How do I look?"
Elliot raised an eyebrow, "Like an owl."
"Yes, but… does it look good on me?"
Elliot's feather's began to puff up in agitation once again and Orestes stepped in before he could say anything rash. "You look great! Feathers really suit you!"
A smile spread across Denise's beak. "Really? I've never tried wearing feathers before. I always thought they were rather gaudy… but this gives me some ideas for my dance costumes."
Orestes's smile dropped a little and looked confused, "Humans wear feathers?"
"I don't think we should be having this conversation right now," Elliot snapped. "Instead, we should be thinking about finding Melody and going home."
"Right, right…" Denise nodded, "So, how do we find her?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Right, I'll let you both ponder that for a moment," Denise said before turning her attention back to her wings. "I'm gonna test these babies out some more."
"Stay close to the tree," Elliot said absentmindedly. He grunted when Denise suddenly pressed up against him lovingly.
"Oh, Elliot, you do care-"
The snowy owl roughly shoved the smaller barred owl away from him. "Don't touch me!" he hissed furiously.
"Right, okay." Denise backed away with her wings held up in surrender. "You're still angry with me. Understandable. I'll leave you to think then."
Elliot closed his eyes and sighed once Denise left the tree.
Orestes watched him worriedly. "You okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine." Elliot turned away and stared off into the distance, his mind trying to search for a solution. He frowned, "Orestes, you've seen Melody last… where do you think she is?"
"With Shade and Barnabe, I hope."
"Yes, but that doesn't really help. Where would they go?"
Orestes walked around as he thought carefully. "I know… that Shade wanted to find his dad. So maybe that's what they are doing."
Elliot lifted his head at the new information, "That means that they would be searching for a colony of northern bats. Chavez had kidnapped thousands of them."
"Yes, that sounds about right."
Okay, good. At least they had an idea what Melody would be doing. "So, our best chance of finding Melody is by looking for other northern bats and asking around."
Orestes nodded. "It's the best plan that we can work off of. But what about D.D.? Aren't we going to look for him too?"
Elliot shook his head no. "My main concern is Melody right now. D.D. is a robot, made of metal. He can't die." But he can be destroyed… Elliot tried not to think about it. "He can take care of himself. Nothing out here can eat him." His stomach growled at the mention of 'eating.'
Orestes smiled, "Speaking of eating, let's hunt! I'm starving! We can teach Denise while we're at it."
Elliot groaned, "Can't you do the teaching?"
Melody flew and did not look back. She didn't have time to waste with Goth. She had to find Shade and the others and get back home! Melody heard the flapping of large wings and she flinched when Goth flew overhead, tailing her. The girl glared at him angrily and sped up, "Will you just leave me alone?!"
"Alone? Are you sure?" Goth asked as he kept up with her. "There's nothing more dangerous for you than traveling by yourself, senorita."
"You're what's dangerous, Goth."
Goth smirked, flattered by that statement. "Yes, I am quite the specimen, aren't I?"
They landed on a tree branch and Melody turned around, glaring at him. "What are you doing following me around? Don't you've got some kingdom to rule with an iron fist? You've made your promise to me, so keep it!"
"I am keeping my promise, senorita," Goth replied easily. "I am not keeping you captive. But leaving you alone in the jungle is hardly compensation for my life debt to you."
Melody's face twisted in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"What I am saying is that you need protection. And who better to offer such protection than myself?" Goth pointed his claw at his own chest. "I was born and raised in this jungle. I know it well. Surely it's a good deal? I come along and help you find your friends and then I can be free of this life debt towards you."
"And what makes you think that I would trust you?"
Goth's smile faded into a scowl.
Melody pressed on, "You once offered us protection in the north, but then decided to eat us."
"We have already talked about this, senorita. I never broke my word in the north. You were the ones who abandoned us to our deaths in the cold once you learned that we eat bat meat."
Melody flinched and lowered her eyes. She really never gave much thought to this before.
Goth crossed his arms and glared down at Melody accusingly, "You think that you are all good, don't you? That you know everything. You think that I am evil for being born the way that I am."
"No, that's not tr-"
"But it is true!" Goth barked back, causing her to jump and her eyes to widen. "Throbb and I were dying. Your winter meant our deaths. My kind doesn't hibernate, we can't sleep months without end. Staying at Hibernaculum was our only chance of surviving the winter. Eating the Silverwings while they slept would have been a mercy, the very thing you have been preaching. You were lucky to have been turned into a silverwing, senorita. If you have been turned into my kind, you would have been forced to take the same measures!"
Melody was dumbstruck. Being a silverwing, she only saw the world through her own eyes. She had never once considered… If she had instead been turned into a false vampire bat, how would that have changed things? Would she have befriended Goth instead? Would she have hunted down Shade? Would she have eaten…
Melody felt sick to her stomach. Not because of the idea of eating her friends, but the cold harsh fact that she would have done so.
"And you even befriended owls, birds who eat bat meat too. Where is the line? Why accept them and not us?!" Goth's voice grew louder as his anger grew.
Melody looked up at Goth, and for the first time in her life, she saw him differently. Not as a savage beast who killed for pleasure, but as someone who was driven to desperation. Carefully, Melody approached Goth and gently placed a hand on his arm.
Goth's muscles tensed under her touch and he looked down at her hand before glaring back at her. He had never seen that look on her face before… what was it?
"I'm sorry," Melody said and Goth's eyes widened in shock.
What did she just say?
"I'm sorry, I never knew… I never thought…" Melody bit her lip, looking very guilty.
Goth breathed through his nose, in and out… staying in control of his anger and calming down. Huh. Who would have thought? Send a few accusing words in her direction, and suddenly he was in the right. Humans really were pitiful creatures. And yet, for some reason… Goth couldn't help but feel relieved, like a heavy weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He didn't realize how much he wanted to hear that apology...
"Hmph, so what now?"
"Huh?" Melody blinked up at him.
"Are you going to search for Shade all by yourself?"
Melody became thoughtful and her hand slipped off his arm. Goth watched her with rapt attention, waiting for her decision. She pressed her hand to her face as she thought, rubbing her cheekbone. She thought for a long while and Goth waited patiently like a predator waiting for the right moment to strike. Eventually, Melody came to her conclusion and she looked Goth straight in the eyes.
"Okay, Goth…"
"Okay?"
"You can fly with me. I will let you protect me and be my guide through this jungle." Melody offered her hand to shake. "But remember your promise. You can't kill me, Shade, Barnabe or any of my friends."
Goth smirked and took Melody's small hand in his. "It is a deal."
Melody winced when Goth squeezed a little too tightly. She pulled her hand away and rubbed it. "Ouch…"
"My apologies, senorita. I don't know my own strength," Goth grinned.
"Hmph, sure you don't," Melody grumbled. She really hoped that she wasn't making a grand mistake in putting her trust in Goth. Her friends weren't going to like this one bit. "But what about your duties as king?"
"I am doing my duty. In the meantime, Itzel can keep things in order."
Melody had no idea what Goth meant by 'doing his duty' and she decided not to ask. She looked up at the sky; it was getting bright. She really needed to try and get in contact with Shade if she could. "Sun's coming up. I'm going to sleep." She flew up towards a higher branch, wanting to put as much distance as she could from Goth. To her delight, she found a small crevice inside the tree to squeeze into instead. Goth couldn't get to her in there if he decided to break his promise. She didn't trust him yet.
Melody crawled inside and was happy to see that there was more space inside. She curled up inside and closed her eyes. She really hoped that Shade was asleep by now.
Melody opened her eyes and she found herself once again at the old Tree Haven. But this time… it was on fire. "Oh no…" Melody gasped. Shade was having a nightmare. She flew towards the tree, searching for Shade.
"No! Mom! Somebody help us!"
Melody heard his voice screaming over the roar of the flames. She found him on the ground, trying to move a heavy branch off of Ariel. Melody dove towards him, "Shade!"
Shade was sobbing as he tried to lift the branch, but he was simply too small. "Mom, please wake up! Please! Don't leave me!" He was so agonized by his nightmare that he didn't even acknowledge that Melody was right there.
She shook him by the shoulder, "Shade, it's okay!"
Shade gasped and turned around. His eyes were wide with hope and tears. "Melody! It's you! Please, you've got to help. My mom's hurt really bad!"
Melody nodded, "Alright, let's move this on the count of three."
Shade nodded too. "Yeah, okay."
They both grabbed the branch and on the count of three, they pulled. Melody grunted. The branch didn't even budge. They tried and tried, but it was no use. Shade collapsed against the branch, crying. "It's all my fault," he cried. "If only I didn't look at the sun!"
Melody realized something. If this was Shade's dream, then he had the power to change it. She put a hand on Shade's back and leaned down next to him. "Shade, listen to me. It's okay."
"No, how can you say that! Mom's hurt! She might be dying and-"
"Your mother is safe. She's with Marina, remember?" At least, Melody hoped that was the case. She didn't see Ariel or Marina in the plane so they had to still be in Canada.
"Wha...huh?" Shade looked up at Melody in confusion, a stray tear falling down his cheek. Memory of real events and the current nightmare clashed in his mind. "I don't…" He looked down at his mother, but the seed of doubt was already planted in his head. The nightmare had lost its power. The image of his mother rippled and faded as Shade's mind returned to clarity.
Shade blinked and looked at Melody with shock. "Wait, am I dreaming?"
Melody smiled, "Yup." She popped the 'p.' She reached over and ruffled his hair. "You okay now, blondie?"
Shade laughed as he wiped his face dry. As he did so, the fire around them faded. The tree returned back to its full blooming glory and the sun came up, lighting the sky with its warmth. Shade sniffed and looked up at Melody, "Y-you're here again."
Melody nodded with a warm look on her face, "Yeah. It's remarkably difficult to find you when you're not dreaming, you know?"
Shade pulled her into a tight hug, something that she returned just as tightly. "Are you okay, Melody? Where are you? We're trying to find you but…"
"I'm fine, Shade. I was held prisoner by Goth for a while-"
Shade gasped and pulled away. He stared at Melody with horror, "Goth?!"
"No, no… Shade, listen. It's okay. I got away but then…" Melody paused. Perhaps telling Shade that Goth was her current traveling buddy wasn't the best idea.
"But then what?" Shade asked, worry etched into his face.
"Then…" Melody smiled and met his eyes. "You're not going to believe this."
"What? Melody, what happened?" He shook her slightly by the arms.
"I met your dad!"
Shade's jaw dropped and Melody giggled at his dumbstruck expression. "What? My dad? You mean-" The silverwing gave a disbelieving laugh and Melody nodded excitedly.
"He's alive, Shade! And he looks just like you, but older!"
Shade was overwhelmed with joy. He even managed to pick Melody up and twirl her around as they laughed. He placed her back down and he walked around her, elated and overwhelmed. "I...I can't believe it. He's here. He's really here!" Shade turned to face Melody again. "Is he with you?"
"Erm… no, we got separated," Melody admitted guiltily. "But I'm sure he's okay. He said something about a Statue Haven-"
"Statue Haven? I've been there!" Shade grinned. He did not seem at all upset that Melody lost his father. "He's probably on his way over there right now."
"Yeah, I think so too." Melody nodded. "Except, I don't know how to get there."
"It's okay," Shade gave her a side hug and leaned his head against hers. "We'll find you and we'll all go to Statue Haven together, I promise."
Melody smiled as she pressed her cheek into his mane. How much she missed him. "How will you find me? I don't even know where I am."
"I have an idea," Shade lifted his head and they looked at each other. "Barnabe, Chinook and I are traveling north by the river that you fell into. If you follow it back south, we should bump into each other, eventually."
Melody nodded, "Okay. Sounds like a plan."
Shade smiled back, "Yeah."
A/N: I SWEAR I'M STILL ON HIATUS! D: I just had to write more! God dammit all! Hahaha! Turns out that after a long break, my creative juices are just overflowing and I have to continue writing. But I'm sure that you guys are pretty happy with that. Lol!
For those who are wondering, the song that Ulysses sings is "Drunken Sailor" by the Irish Rovers. I used to sing it in fifth grade all the time with my classmates. It's such a fun song! I hope the inclusion of it in the story has made you smile like it did me.
And it looks like Melody and Goth are travel buddies now. :3 Hohoho~
I'll catch you guys later!
