Rio One and A Half- edited

by VPVPVP

Athos and his friends must travel to Rio so that Levi, Aurora and D'Artagnan, who are members of three very endangered species, can breed and have chicks to propagate them but things go wrong when they are kidnapped by smugglers with cats who also threaten another rare macaw family. Athos and the others must escape and get the smugglers caught but that is easier said than done

12. 12- A failed rescue attempt

Chapter 12- a failed rescue attempt

A while later, Francisco, Susan, Lucy, Blake, Drake and Jake were on their way back to Tulio's Aviary from the restaurant. With them were Francisco's wife named Dolores and Francisco and Dolores's two sons named Benny and Miguel. As Francisco drove the jeep down the main road, Drake had a look outside. It was by now dark as the sun had almost completely set.

"Boy, I didn't realise how late it was getting," he said, "We'd better pick up our cat, two cockatoos and greyhound quickly."

"Francisco told us that you have quite a collection of birds," said Delores, "Especially macaws. My favourite is the scarlet macaw for its brilliant red, yellow and blue feathers."

"Really?" said Drake, "Well, my favourite bird has got to be the Major Mitchell's cockatoo. Their crest is stunning when it is completely raised."

"Major Mitchell's cockatoo?" said Delores with a smile, "Francisco and I used to have one named Frankie. Sadly, he passed away from old age. He was a fun bird to play with, he was. What's your Major Mitchell's cockatoo called?"

"Sunset," replied Jake.

"That's a nice name," said Benny.

"Oh, Jake chose that name because her plumage colours resemble the colours of a sunset," said Blake, "Especially the pinkish shade to her feathers and her red, pinkish and yellow crest."

Then Benny placed a hand on his stomach and lipped his lips.

"Well, it's been a real pleasure eating with you guys," he said, "I was getting hungry and was ready for the meal."

"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it, son," said Francisco. Benny smiled. Then Miguel asked, "So what other pets do you have? I know you'll have already told us but I can't remember."

"Well, we have another cockatoo named Travis but he's a sulfur-crested," said Susan, "We have seven macaws, all each a different species but we thought that we had four hyacinth macaws until Tulio told us that three of them weren't hyacinths at all, and we have a cat and a greyhound."

"What were their names?" asked Miguel.

"Our cat is called Veggie, he's entirely vegetarian sand would not even eat a mouse or fish," said Susan, "Our dog's called Dash and our seven macaws are named Athos, Porthos, Aramis, D'Artagnan, Phoebe, Levi and Aurora. Athos is a scarlet macaw, Porthos is a blue-and-gold macaw, Aramis is a Buffon's macaw, Phoebe is a hyacinth macaw, and D'Artagnan, Aurora and Levi, which we assumed to be hyacinth macaws like Phoebe, turned out to be a Lear's, Spix and glaucous macaw respectively."

"Glaucous macaw?" repeated Delores, "Those birds were last seen in the wild in the 1960s, weren't they?"

"They were, yes," said Francisco, "And after that last sighting, the species was declared extinct but when we found that female shortly after we found two more Spix macaws and the Lear's macaw, we were very surprised."

Then Francisco just remembered Levi and the female macaw (Lapis Lazuli).

"That reminds me," he said, "We'd better check on Levi, Aurora and D'Artagnan and their mates and see if they had had any eggs yet. I hope they'll have mated by now. It would be a real achievement if they had, especially Levi and the female glaucous macaw since those two are the last known glaucous macaws alive."

"And then what?" asked Lucy.

"Well, we're going to release those birds into the Blu Bird Sanctuary," said Francisco, "When their chicks get old enough, and I feel I must tell you this, Susan and Lucy."

"And what's that?" asked Susan.

"You might have to give up D'Artagnan, Aurora and Levi since they are part of three critically endangered macaw species," said Francisco sadly. Susan and Lucy's faces fell at this comment.

"Sad, I know but I'm afraid you've no choice, you two," said Francisco sadly, "It's important that we preserve the lives of as many individuals of a critically endangered species as possible, especially Levi, Aurora and their respective mates, as well as that male macaw's sister, since Aurora, the male macaw and his sister are the only other Spix macaws besides Blu, Jewel and their chicks while Levi and his mate and eventually their chicks are the only glaucous macaws alive."

Susan and Lucy just looked at him when suddenly; Francisco's mobile phone went off. The ringtone went to the tune of 'Dancing on the Ceiling', another song by Lionel Richie and one of Francisco's favourite tracks, and Lionel Richie was one of Francisco's favourite artists as well.

"Oh, no," muttered Francisco as his phone rang and with that, he began to look for somewhere to pull up. After he had managed to find a space and pull the jeep up in that spot, Francisco turned the engine off and took out his ringing phone.

"Did you know that it's illegal in the UK to drive while on a mobile phone?" asked Lucy to Miguel and Benny.

"I wouldn't be surprised," said Benny, "Talking on a cellphone while driving takes much of your concentration off the road, increasing the risk of an accident taking place."

"Hello, Francisco Abilio here," said Francisco on his phone. The caller's voice was loud enough for the other humans with him to hear.

"Francisco, you'd better get back to Tulio's Aviary right now," said the caller. Francisco's face fell as it was filled with dread.

"Why? What's happened?" he asked. As he said this, Susan, Lucy, Blake, Drake and Jake exchanged glances as a horrible feeling bloomed within them.

A few minutes later, Francisco, his wife and two sons, and Susan and company were back at Tulio's Aviary. The place had been turned into a crime scene with a small fleet of police cars with their blue and red flashing lights on top of their roofs parked around Tulio's Aviary. Black and yellow plastic banners with the words 'Do Not Cross' in both Brazilian Portuguese and English were stretched around the perimeter of the premises to close them off from the public. Other cars besides the police cars were also present as other employees had driven to Tulio's Aviary, also alerted via phone. Then suddenly, there were the sounds of frustrated shouts.

"Taken!?" shouted a man, "What do you mean they were taken!?"

"But it's true, Tulio," said one of the guards, "All the birds have been stolen from the medical room."

While Tulio continued to talk with the guard with Linda and Fernando accompanying him, Susan and Lucy looked on with horrified faces while Blake, Drake and Jake searched the area where Veggie, Dash, Travis and Sunset had remained while they were at the restaurant. The guard talking with Tulio was in a terrible state. He looked as though he had been dragged through a patch of land filled with thorny plants. His clothes were torn with a few rows of gash-like holes in them, and his face, arms and some of his upper torso were covered in scratches and bruises. A first-aider was treating the guard's wounds while one of the policemen stood by, listening to the guard's explanation.

"How did it happen?" asked Linda while Tulio, her husband, looked horrified and in disbelief at what had happened. Around this group, some of the other employees were asking other policemen and two other guards who were also covered in scratches and tattered clothes, the same questions. The first guard then held up a few hairs.

"We were set upon by a bunch of cats," he explained, "And when we tried to stop them, they attacked and clawed us. Then the next thing we knew, all the birds had been taken. I know it sounds crazy but it's true."

"Cats!?" asked Linda incredulously "How did they get into the Aviary?"

"I don't know," muttered one of the guards, wincing as the first-aider dabbed one if his injuries with a wet cloth, "But they came upon us by surprise while we were setting up the anti-burglar devices, attacked us and stole all the birds including those that are still recovering from their injuries."

"What!?" snapped Tulio, "But those birds still on the road to recovery might not stand a chance in the hands of whoever has organised this theft."

"Tulio," said Francisco's voice. Tulio, Linda, Fernando and the others with them turned and saw Francisco. Francisco wore a sombre look on his face.

"Did you find the three Spix macaws, the two Lear's macaws and the two glaucous macaws in the breeding chamber, Francisco?" asked Tulio. Francisco gazed at him silently first as Susan and Lucy walked in to listen to his answer but they all knew what he was about to say before he even said it.

"They've been stolen too," Francisco managed to say at last, "All seven of those macaws, including both the glaucous macaws."

As these words were absorbed into the group's heads, Tulio began to break down.

"Oh, no," he shouted with his hands buried in his face, "B-b-but those birds are rare and ultra precious, especially the two glaucous macaws and the three Spix macaws!"

As Tulio began to lament on this, Susan and Lucy's eyes were filled with tears. But Aurora, Levi and D'Artagnan were not the only birds they knew had been taken. From what the guard had told Tulio, Linda and Fernando about the other birds in the medical room being stolen too, it could only mean one thing for Athos, Porthos, Aramis and Phoebe as well. However, the news was about to get worse.

"Susan, Lucy," cried Drake. The two sisters turned round and saw their three triplet cousins rush in towards them.

"Travis, Sunset, Veggie and Dash are missing too," said Drake sadly. Susan and Lucy were filled with horror. Then the two began to break down as well.

"What have we done!?" cried Susan, "We should NEVER have left those four pets alone while we left to go to the restaurant."

"Could they have been taken by those thieves as well?" asked Lucy. Blake, Drake and Jake didn't reply but based on the looks on their faces, it seemed likely. Then Francisco appeared. He had heard Drake's mentioning of Veggie, Dash and the cockatoos' disappearance as well.

"Where did you leave them last?" asked Francisco.

"Outside the entrance to Tulio's Aviary," said Blake, "They did opt to stay there while we went to the restaurant with you and we set up two of the cages to provide them with shelter but now they've gone."

"We can't find them anywhere," said Jake. Francisco then began to scratch his head as how Veggie, Dash, Travis and Sunset had disappeared was confusing to him. Then Tulio, with a scowl on his face, appeared.

"Well, however those four pets have gone," he said seriously, "We've GOT to get those birds back at all costs, especially the seven macaws taken from the breeding chamber. If this is the work of another group of thieves, then we need to track them down and get them arrested."

"I absolutely agree, Tulio," said Francisco. Then he and Tulio looked at Susan, Lucy, Blake, Drake and Jake as they began to weep.

"We should never have left our other pets here," muttered Susan in a strangled voice. Tulio then left as Linda had called him while Francisco began to comfort the five owners. However, he was still perplexed and in disbelief.

"I just cannot understand how that group of thieves' cats had managed to enter the Aviary and take all the birds," he muttered.

"Cats?" asked Drake confused.

"That's what one of the guards said," said Francisco. But this was a confusing question. Why would a group of thieves enlist the help of cats to take the birds from the Aviary? However, the answer would have to wait. Getting the birds, especially Aurora, Levi, D'Artagnan, and the other four macaws named Brisa, Zephyr, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire back was more important.

Meanwhile

While all this was happening at Tulio's Aviary, D'Artagnan began to come to. He groaned as his world merged into visibility.

"D'Artagnan," cried Aurora's voice in an echo, "Are you alright?"

D'Artagnan groaned again and raised a wing to his head. Then as soon as his vision cleared, he was staring into the amber eyes of Aurora and the blue eyes of Levi. D'Artagnan immediately jolted up.

"Wh-where are we?" he asked.

"Where do you think we are birdbrain?" snarled Zephyr's voice. D'Artagnan turned and looked at Zephyr who was with Brisa, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire as they looked around their surroundings with scowls on their faces. The seven birds were in some sort of device. Vertical silvery bars were arranged in a square around the seven birds and the floor and ceiling were solid slabs of metal. One barred side had a door of some sort, locked in place by a strip of silver shaped like an 'L'. Levi looked at it when he noticed that the surroundings were noisy, filled with the sounds of mournful squawking and chirping. This indicated that there were other birds with them, also in the same devices as the seven macaws. Aurora then began to look around when she heard a familiar voice call her name.

"Aurora!" it cried, "Aurora!"

Aurora traced the sound and found its source.

"Athos?" she asked. She managed to find the familiar red form with brown eyes through the adjacent device called a cage. The next cage had parakeets in them but in the cage next to them, Athos, Porthos and Aramis were present, Athos being stuffed into a cage of his own. Aurora struggled to see them.

"What's going on?" she asked. She then saw a familiar large navy blue form in a cage next to Athos and company's. The navy blue form was groaning and muttering about restricted space.

"Phoebe?" asked Aurora. The navy blue form was Phoebe alright. However, she looked seriously cramped in her cage. It was obvious that the cage she was in was too small for her, and she was finding movement within it almost impossible.

"How could these pests do this to me?" snarled Phoebe angrily, "How could they force me into this tiny cage?"

"How do you think WE feel?" shouted a female voice from the cage above her. That sounded like the female scarlet macaw, the same one that gave Athos a hiss and a scowl when he first saw her. Aurora, D'Artagnan and Levi looked up and saw that the female scarlet macaw was stuffed into another cage with the female blue-and-gold macaw.

"We can't move at all," shouted the female blue-and-gold macaw, "We're completely jammed in here."

Suddenly, Sapphire's eyes widened in shock.

"Orquidea, is that you?" she asked. And with that, she looked for the blue-and-gold macaw until her eyes landed on the one that just spoke. The female blue-and-gold macaw looked stuffed in the cage with the female scarlet macaw and could not move at all but when she saw Sapphire, her eyes widened in shock.

"Sapphire!?" she cried, D'Artagnan flinching with surprise.

"You know that blue-and-gold macaw?" he asked.

"It's none of your business, pet," snapped Sapphire obnoxiously much to D'Artagnan's appalled chagrin. Sapphire turned to the female blue-and-gold macaw and said, "I didn't know you've managed to survive that fire that tore through the jungle when we were young. How..."

"It's a long story," muttered the blue-and-gold macaw uncomfortably. Then the scarlet macaw's eyes caught Zephyr and Brisa but instead of a surprised or even a relieved reaction, it was one of utter dislike and distaste.

"Well if it isn't Zephyr and his bratty sister Brisa," she snarled, "I thought your tribe would have perished in that fire that ripped through the jungle."

Zephyr and Brisa's feathers spiked out when they looked at the scarlet macaw.

"Bratty!?" snapped Brisa, "Who are you calling bratty, Ruby!? I think if there is any macaw that's a brat; it's YOU!"

The scarlet macaw, who Aurora, D'Artagnan and Levi presumed was called Ruby, shook her head in shock and offense.

"How DARE you," she retorted, "When I get out of this cage I'm gonna rip your feathers out!"

Nearby, Athos, Porthos and Aramis flinched at the hostility between Zephyr, Brisa and the scarlet macaw named Ruby. Phoebe, however, was too cramped to even care. Then another voice said, "Ruby? Orquidea? Is that you?"

"Esmeralda?" asked Ruby, the female scarlet macaw, "Where are you?"

"We're behind that hyacinth macaw," moaned 'Esmeralda's' voice. Then two more groans were heard. Ruby, however, was too stuffed in her cage to move.

"I-I can't move to see you, Esmeralda," she said, "I've been stuffed into this thing with Orquidea."

As Ruby mentioned Esmeralda, Sapphire's feathers bristled.

"Sounds like that wretched great green macaw's also survived the fire," she snarled, "If I ever see her, I'll..."

"Do you think this is the right time to be challenging other birds to a fight?" asked Aurora. Sapphire shot her a glare. Then D'Artagnan scowled.

"These thieves definitely don't seem to care about us, folks," he muttered, "Based on how Phoebe and some other birds are stuffed in their cages, they don't seem to care about us at all."

"That's exactly what I mean, pesky pet," snarled Lapis Lazuli. Then D'Artagnan turned and saw the look on Ruby's face. It was now replaced by a look of fear.

"That scarlet macaw looks very scared," he said. Then he heard the female blue-and-gold macaw, who he presumed was named Orquidea, call, "Cobalto, can you see anything?"

"I can't, Orquidea, my movement is restricted," replied Cobalto's voice, "Ouch, my wing!"

D'Artagnan flinched as the voice then groaned in pain. Athos then rolled his eyes and tired to look for a hole in the cloak covering the cages. When he couldn't find any, he began to peer down through the bars of the cage and down the side of some sort of container the caged birds were in.

"Can you see anything Athos?" asked Porthos. Athos then retracted his head into the cage and sat down, having given up.

"I can't," he muttered, but then a look of dread crept into his face, "But based on where we're going, it isn't good at all. Our owners are seriously going to be worried when they find us gone."

Suddenly, he heard Ruby's voice shout, "What, are you a PET!?"

Athos flinched and looked up at the female scarlet macaw named Ruby who eyed him with a scowl on her face. However, he did not reply, much to Ruby's distasteful reaction. Then D'Artagnan began to boil with anger.

"When I get out of here, I'm going to give our kidnappers a piece of my mind," he snarled. Aramis retorted to this with an angry voice.

"D'Artagnan, that would NOT be a good idea," he yelled, "What if our thieves are powerful?"

However, the sometimes hot-headed D'Artagnan looked at him without much of a care about this statement. He did not tolerate cruel humans and sometimes wanted to jump at them and scratch them.

Outside the cloak covering the caged birds and their kidnappers, Veggie, Dash, Travis and Sunset continued following the large object at a safe distance. They had seen the cloaked group leave Tulio's Aviary and had been following them.

"I've managed to get a glimpse of some of the animals under that cloak, you three," said Sunset in a low voice, "And they're definitely cats. Also I saw two pairs of feet which indicated two humans."

"They've definitely stolen some birds from Tulio's Aviary, I can hear some bird squawking," said Veggie, "But I've a horrible feeling that Athos and some of the others including Aurora, Levi and D'Artagnan or what's worse, all SEVEN of them are among them."

"I wouldn't be surprised if Aurora, D'Artagnan, Levi and those four other macaws in the breeding chamber are among them," said Dash, "They're rare macaws after all and they're often sought after by animal thieves and smugglers."

"Smugglers?" repeated Travis. Then his look turned dark.

"Don't tell me that the cloaked group are a second group of smugglers, are they?" he said.

"I don't know but we'll soon find out," said Dash. Then the four pets continued following the cloaked group. The cloaked group had entered what was known as the slums of Rio. The surrounding buildings appeared very basic and there were many people walking up and down the streets dressed in basic clothes. A number of the buildings looked like they were in disrepair for some of them had cracks in their sides and a few broken windows. There were also a number of trash cans dotting the paths and entrances to alleyways and the paths and alleys themselves didn't look very tidy. Poverty was clear in this part of the Brazilian city. Veggie quivered slightly as he looked around at where they were.

"I don't like this place, folks," he whispered timidly, "I've heard that places like this are sometimes fraught with danger lurking around every corner."

"Look, let's just stay focussed on that cloaked group, Veggie," said Dash, "We've got some friends and birds to rescue."

Veggie did so and continued following the cloaked group with Dash, Travis and Sunset. The two cockatoos also looked uneasy in this place. Their crests were partially raised and they feared that something was going to jump out at the quartet any moment. Furthermore, it being dark didn't help at all. As the quartet continued following the cloaked group, they saw it stop in front of one of the buildings. This building was large compared to the rest of the buildings surrounding it. The glass of the windows was broken and there were large holes in them, indicative of disrepair. Dash, Veggie, Travis and Sunset stopped and hid behind a trash can while the cloaked group stood still. Then after a while, the cloaked group disappeared into the building through a door. After the entire group had entered the building, the cloak was removed and taken in by someone and the door was closed. Dash, Veggie, Travis and Sunset then quickly crept towards the building and towards one of the broken windows. There they peered into the building, being cautious to avoid being spotted at the same time.

Inside the building, the cloaked group, which were two humans, a boy and a girl, and a number of cats, approached another human, an adult man, at a table with their captured and caged birds. They were surrounded by more cats and three more humans, two men and a woman. One man was tall and had a fairly chubby build and reddish hair while the other was shorter, slimmer and well-built and had black hair. The woman also bore a slim build and was medium height between the two men. Her hair was frizzy brown hair and all three had tan coloured skin. The man at the desk had black hair and was slim, and like the other three adults his skin was tan in colour. The boy and girl both had orangish hair and also tanned skin. Due to their age, they were shorter than the four adults. The man at the desk then turned round and smiled at the boy and the girl as they presented their caught birds in a large container on a single wheel (called a wheelbarrow) before him.

"Well, looks like our two youngest members have successfully managed to catch a load of birds with some of our cats," he said with a wide grin on his face, "Congratulations, Jack and Jill."

The boy and the girl, whose names were Jack and Jill, looked at the man with sad and reluctant faces. Around their feet, the accompanying cats including a black and white cat with brown eyes received congratulations from their comrades, among them a fierce looking dark grey cat. The participants gladly accepted their comrades' praise unlike Jack and Jill who had remained unhappy at their deed. That unhappy look was also borne by one of the cats. That one, a female white calico cat with black and ginger patches dotting her body looked very downcast indeed, just like the two young humans. When the dark grey cat, which was a male or tom, saw the calico and her downcast facial look, it gave her a frown.

"Why are you so downcast, Catina?" it asked in a Brazilian accent which was borne by him and the other cats and owners, "You should be proud of yourself in helping to catch so many birds. So should Jack and Jill."

The calico replied with a sad gaze to the grey cat. Annoyed, the grey cat rolled his eyes and then left to join the man at the desk. The man stood up, walked over to Jack and Jill and smiled at the hoard of caged birds as the two men and the woman unloaded them and placed them onto the table and floor with the help of the cats. From the broken window, Travis, Sunset, Veggie and Dash watched. When Sunset saw a familiar hyacinth macaw, she drew in a short gasp.

"It's Phoebe," she whispered to the other three. But when she saw how poor Phoebe was stuffed into such a small cage, she recoiled with horror. Travis, Dash and Veggie also flinched with this and also outrage.

"Looks like Phoebe isn't the only bird to be forced into such a tiny cage," said Veggie in a low voice, before moving his brown eyes to scan the other birds, "Some of those other birds are as well. Look at how that scarlet macaw and blue-and-gold macaw are jam-packed into that cage as well."

"Those humans and their cats are definitely up to no good," said Dash with a frown. Then a thought came to him.

"We're going to have to bust those birds out of there, but how?" he said. Travis then left to search for an entrance, leaving the other three to continue watching the horrific scene.

Back inside the room, the slender man, who was the leader of the group, was smiling at the variety of birds caught from Tulio's Aviary. Around him Jack and Jill, the two men and the woman who were the accomplices of the leader, continued unloading the cages from the wheelbarrow and placing them around the room on the floor and table.

"You really have done a good job indeed, Jack and Jill," said the lead man, "You've managed to steal a wide variety of birds. It's not very common that we manage to capture a wide selection at all."

He then looked closely at the birds, which were macaws, toucans, parakeets and the small birds like honeycreepers, in their cages with a wide grin full of glee on his face. The birds, however, were not at all impressed. Some were angry, some were frightened and some were upset. Athos glared fiercely at the slim man as he looked from him, Aramis and Porthos to Phoebe who was stuffed into a cage too small for her. Aramis glared furiously at the humans and the cats as they unloaded the last of the captured birds. When he watched the man smile at Phoebe and then move on to look at the next cage, he was filled with anger.

"Susan, Lucy, Blake, Drake and Jake would NEVER stuff Phoebe into a cage as small as that," he snarled.

"Hey, stop talking, parrot," said a voice, followed by a paw slamming the cage making Aramis and Porthos flinch. Aramis then found himself staring at two irritated pairs of eyes belonging to two of the cats. Then the two cats moved on, leaving Aramis to let loose an irritated sigh while Porthos glared angrily after the felines. As the slim man continued admiring the selection of birds caught, one of the three adults said, "Frank, look at this!"

The leader, named Frank, looked up and faced the woman who held a certain cage. That cage contained Aurora, D'Artagnan, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire, Zephyr and Brisa.

"What is it, Vera?" asked Frank.

"You will not believe what Jack and Jill have also caught," said the woman, "These seven must be the valuable blue macaws."

Frank then walked over to the woman and examined the seven macaws in it. When Athos, Porthos and Aramis saw the seven macaws, they flinched in disbelief. Phoebe, however, just gazed at them, too uncomfortable to make a face. As Frank shoved his nose up to the bars, D'Artagnan, Aurora and Levi, filled with fear, backed away while Zephyr, Brisa, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire looked on with furious eyes and puffed out feathers.

"Wow," said Frank in amazement, "Three Spix macaws, two Lear's macaws and... two glaucous macaws including the female found by that Tulio guy and his team!"

Suddenly, Zephyr lashed at the human and hissed loudly into his face, making Frank recoil and jump back.

"Good grief," gasped he in shock, "Some of those birds sure are feisty. However, we must preserve those birds for they are extremely rare. Put them down on the table, Vera."

Vera did so and took the cage containing the seven macaws to the table and placed them next to Porthos and Aramis. Porthos gazed at D'Artagnan, Aurora and Levi and then at Zephyr, Brisa, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire.

"Those wretched thieves are not gonna hesitate to sell you as soon as possible, you seven," he muttered in a low voice. D'Artagnan just replied with a silent gaze. Then Sapphire examined Porthos closely.

"Who's that blue-and-gold macaw?" she asked. Porthos was about to reply but closed his beak when he and the other macaws found a few cats staring at them as if to say 'shut up, birds!'. Immediately the macaws angrily stopped talking.

"Frank, I've heard that there are another five Spix macaws living on the sanctuary too. What shall we do with them?" asked one of the male accomplices, the chubby one.

"We'll have to wait and see about that, Marvin," said Frank, "Now why don't you, Vera and Luke help us transfer these birds into the other room with the others?"

The man named Marvin nodded and left through a door into another room, Vera and the other, well-built man named Luke behind him. Then Jack and Jill spoke.

"Frank," said Jack.

"What, Jack?" muttered Frank. Jack gazed with a concerned look at Phoebe and how she was stuffed into the cage. Jill also gazed at the other hyacinth macaw in the same state.

"Do you think we should transfer these hyacinth macaws to larger cages?" asked Jill, "The cages they are in are too small for them."

"Look you two just leave those birds," snapped Frank annoyed and deliberately showing an uncaring attitude as though the situation was an inconvenience, "And just let's get these birds through to the other room. We don't have time for arguments."

Jack and Jill looked at him and then at Phoebe and the male hyacinth macaw, Cobalto, before reluctantly complying, leaving Phoebe to gaze after the pair in anger. Aramis seethed as he also watched the boy and his twin sister leave.

"I'm gonna turn the faces of those two human brats into a clawed mess when I get out of this cage, for their treatment of Phoebe and the other hyacinth macaw," he snarled, his green feathers raised.

"Aramis, please, cool it," said Porthos, wary of some of the cats looking at the group with glares. Aramis let loose an irritated sigh and tried to calm his anger.

"God didn't intend us animals to be treated with cruelty, you know," he growled under his breath, "These humans don't seem to care about us at all."

The calico cat also flashed Phoebe a sympathetic and guilty gaze before joining the other cats to move the birds into the other room. The cats' owners, Frank, Jack, Jill, Marvin, Luke and Vera continued checking the other caged birds and within moments, they prepared to pick up the first cages. However, this band of birdnappers was unaware that they were being watched.

Travis had managed to find a way of access into the building; a large hole in the wall to the room that was big enough for Dash to squeeze through. After this, he had called Veggie, Dash and Sunset over and the trio had joined him. Next, Travis watched the group of thieves as they prepared to move the birds into the other room and made careful sure that none of them had seen the quartet. He then turned his eyes from the group to the caged birds, including Athos and the others with them on the table.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do..." began the sulphur-crested cockatoo.

"Let me launch the first attack," said Dash, "I'll cause the distraction while you three free the birds."

"But Dash, you'd get hurt," objected Sunset, concerned for the greyhound's safety, "There are dozens of cats in there and if they overwhelm you..."

"No time to argue, Sunset," said Dash and with that, he entered the hole to prepare to leap out upon the group of thieves. While the others prepared to pick up the first cages, Vera continued looking over D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire, Zephyr and Brisa, but especially Levi and Lapis Lazuli, wickedly admiring them.

"I think those two glaucous macaws are definitely the last of their species, Frank," she said, "Since the glaucous macaw is believed to be extinct in the wild, I think these two should have an enormous price tag on them."

Levi looked at the woman timidly while Lapis Lazuli scowled.

"Let's find a chain to shackle those two together then, so that they are kept together," said Frank as he moved a cage full of honeycreepers to the other side of the room, "After all, we cannot afford to lose either of those two precious macaws."

As he said this, Levi and Lapis Lazuli flinched with horror and dread. Then Vera then began to look for a chain.

"What did that human mean 'chain those two together'?" asked Porthos to Athos who was stuck in his own cage. However, he knew that it was a stupid question for he had already deduced what it meant, and Athos didn't reply. Whatever Frank meant was about to reveal itself shortly. However, while the thieves continued sorting through the captured birds, Dash had assumed his position, waiting for the right moment to strike while Veggie, Sunset and Travis prepared to make their move after Dash had made his. Then one of the men, Luke, found a silvery snake ending in two silvery rings, one at each end.

"Here you go, Vera, I've found one," he said and lifted it up. The chain and its rings glinted in the artificial light.

"Oh, brilliant, Luke," said Vera with a smile. Then the two humans walked over to the cage containing D'Artagnan and the other six. Dash watched the two humans closely and chose this as the moment to strike. As Vera and Luke approached the cage with Luke extending a hand to open the door, Aurora, Levi and D'Artagnan backed away while Zephyr, Brisa, Lapis Lazuli and Sapphire spread their wings and made scowls on their faces as they took up threat positions. When Vera saw the positions of Levi and Lapis Lazuli in the cage with the other five sandwiched between them, she put on an irritated frown.

"Now how are we gonna chain those two glaucous macaws together if they're in a position like that?" she muttered, "Not to mention the other five birds in the way."

"Then let's enlist the help of our cats," said Luke and with that, he called some cats over. Some cats, including the white and black brown-eyed one, jumped onto the table.

"Otis, can you and your group help us restrain the three Spix and two Lear's macaws while we chain the two glaucous together please?" ordered Luke. Otis and his friends nodded in obedience and took up their positions, reaching their front paws into the cage to seize the five macaws by the necks to restrain them and keep them out of the way. Several more also prepared to shove the glaucous macaws within range of their owners and each other. Two of the cats held Aurora and D'Artagnan by the necks against the bars while a third pushed Levi forward. Levi tried to counter this by returning to the side but the cat shoved him forward each time. While the cat sought to Levi, more cats tried grabbing Brisa, Sapphire and Zephyr to restrain them also. However the three macaws retaliated by biting their paws, making them retract their paws in an instant from the sharp pain.

"Look, just grab those macaws and restrain them. Is that difficult?" demanded Luke impatiently. The cats did so but received another bite from Brisa, Zephyr and Sapphire. Then Luke rolled his eyes and decided to try and chain Lapis Lazuli to Levi himself, his hand taking hold of the cage door to open it. However, he and the others with him were in for a shock.

The moment Luke opened the cage door; Dash took this as the right moment to explode into action. With a loud bark, he launched into the air and landed onto Luke! Taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of the greyhound, Luke released a startled cry as Dash then began to bark and viciously bite him. Vera and the cats with her also cried in utmost surprise, clearly NOT expecting this at all, and Dash's appearance has certainly thrown a spanner, or rather a bone from a dog's perspective, in the works. Luke. Frank, Marvin, Jack and Jill and the other cats also whirled round upon hearing the commotion as it erupted.

"What the-!?" shouted the first in shock. Then Dash began to send Luke toppling in Marvin's direction and crash into the man. Many cats managed to bolt as the two male humans slammed into a heap on the ground, Marvin landing painfully on his backside. Then soon, the whole room erupted into TOTAL chaos as Dash began to unleash his fury on the six thieves. The caged birds looked on with terrified eyes as the six humans then began shouting and attempt to seize the greyhound but Dash dodged their attempts, retaliating with barks and bites. Cats also leaped in to try and stop Dash but the greyhound also dodged and lashed at them too, resulting in cats being knocked back from paw swipes and kicking back legs from the light grey dog. Then some of the birds recognised the greyhound.

"DASH!?" shouted Athos in shock. D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi, Aramis, Porthos and Phoebe also looked on in disbelief as Dash sank his teeth into Frank, Marvin, Vera and Luke as well as swipe his paws at them, making them shout and utter foul words. Jack and Jill and the calico named Catina, frightened by the inferno, hid in a corner and cowered at the chaos in fear.

While Dash caused the thieves trouble and kept them busy, Veggie, Travis and Sunset quickly entered the room through the hole. They made a beeline for the cages nearest to the hole and began to unlock them. When the birds saw Veggie, they backed away, assuming Veggie to be one of the smugglers' cats.

"Don't worry, I'm here to rescue you," assured Veggie and with that, he unlocked the cage holding three toucans. As soon as he had done this, Veggie said, "Right, fly like the wind out of here. There's a broken window with a big enough hole for you to escape over there!"

He indicated with a paw point to said window. The toucans, without hesitation, flew off and made a beeline for the broken window, where they disappeared into the dark outside air. Veggie then opened the cage door containing a couple of parakeets and they made their escape too. While Veggie freed the birds on the ground, Sunset and Travis unlocked the cage doors locking Athos and Phoebe in their cages. Athos quickly left his cage but Phoebe struggled out but when she was completely out of the cage relief washed over her.

"Boy, I'm glad to be out of that tiny cage," said the hyacinth macaw. However, the escaped birds hadn't gone unnoticed despite Dash's distraction. As Sunset and Travis turned to unlock the next cage to set the scarlet and blue-and-gold macaw free, a group of felines leaped upon the cockatoos to stop their progress. Taken by surprise, Sunset and Travis halted their rescue and launched a vicious counterattack against the cats. While the cockatoos engaged their comrades, four cats restrained Phoebe and Athos to prevent them from interfering or escaping. The other birds in the cages nearby watched the cockatoo-versus-cat fight in horror when D'Artagnan saw that Luke and Vera had left the door to the cage he and the other six macaws with him were in. Seizing the opportunity without hesitation, D'Artagnan made a break for it, followed by Aurora, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire and then Brisa and Zephyr. The seven macaws then began to fly around the room like blue comets searching for a way out while Frank, Vera, Marvin and Luke continued struggling with Dash.

Back on the ground, Veggie managed to set free a group of honeycreepers but before he could set free the next group of birds, a couple of green-winged macaws, a white, black and ginger blur appeared and tackled right into his side, knocked him into a short tumble and stunning him. Veggie flashed a stunned look but then the same blur appeared and tackled into him again. This made Veggie snap as rage exploded within him. Without thinking, he lunged at his attacker, which was the female calico cat and within seconds, the pair launched into a vicious catfight, screeches erupting into the air and claws tearing wildly. Back in the air, D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Zephyr, Sapphire and Brisa continued flying around, trying to avoid the chaos below. From the table, Athos, Porthos, Aramis and Phoebe looked up in horror and angst.

"D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi," cried Athos. Then Sunset, after clawing some of the felines and driving them away, managed to set free Ruby and Orquidea and they joined in the chaos before another cat pounced onto the Major Mitchell's cockatoo and restrained her. Next, Frank's voice erupted through the chaos of shouts and cat screeches. The lead poacher had spotted the blue comets of D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire, Zephyr and Brisa frantically zip around the room.

"The (bleep)in' blue macaws have escaped," he cried, "After them before they escape this room too!"

And with that, hands and cat paws changed their target from Dash to the blue macaws and within moments, the seven macaws faced a storm of hand and paw swipes as those hands and paws tried to seize them. However, they dodged and continued to zip about the room. With the thieves distracted by the blue macaws, Dash tried to add to the trouble but Frank appeared and wrapped his around the dog's torso, forcing the greyhound to fight against the man. Dash growled viciously and tried biting but Frank clamped a hand over his mouth to disarm the dog. Then the lead poacher wrestled the greyhound to the floor to subdue him. however, Dash refused to admit defeat and continued writhing in his arms.

Aurora, D'Artagnan, Levi, Lapis Lazuli, Sapphire, Zephyr and Brisa continued flying frantically around the air above the poachers and other animals, avoiding every cat paw and human hand that came their way. Those human hands or cat paws either missed or struck another unintended target, whether other cats or someone else. Marvin's hands kept hitting either Vera or Luke, resulting in slaps landing on the two while the cats' paws struck other cats or a human. Ruby and Orquidea had attempted to fly into the air to escape but they had been seized and restrained by some cats. Then after a few more minutes of chaos, the seven blue macaws finally began to be caught. The first to be captured was Levi. Vera had managed to catch him out of the air with her hands and restrain him. Levi struggled but the woman kept a firm grip on him, one hand over the glaucous macaw's beak to prevent him from biting her. Then Aurora and Sapphire were captured by some of the cats, their paws finally landing on their right targets. D'Artagnan was caught subsequently after the two macaws, an all-black cat pouncing onto him and pinning him down to the floor on his back. However, there were still three precious blue macaws zipping about the room. Zephyr, Brisa and Lapis Lazuli continued their frantic search for an exit, avoiding every human hand and cat paw swipe that came their way and sending them into unintended targets. This added fuel to the chaos as it caused fireballs of rage to explode. Marvin accidentally slapped Luke in the face when he swiped his hand at Lapis Lazuli only to miss, much to Luke's volcanic outburst.

"Oh, you clumsy imbecile," snarled he and with that, he struck Marvin back a punch to the head.

"STOP THOSE MACAWS, NOW!" shouted Frank as he continued restraining Dash on the floor, the greyhound writhing and growling in his arms. The cats continued their efforts to catch Zephyr, Brisa and Lapis Lazuli only for the macaws to dodge them, much to the cats' frustration. Then Lapis Lazuli turned and saw the broken window. The moment her eyes found that exit, the blue glaucous macaw rocketed off for it, followed by Zephyr and Brisa. However, before the three could successfully escape to freedom, a dark grey blur shot in and knocked each macaw out of the air. However, the cat's attack was ruthless and brutal and in the process the three macaws ended up hurt. Lapis Lazuli screeched in pain and grasped her wing before a cat pounced onto her and restrained her, while Brisa was sent flying into a wall nearby. She fell to the floor, stunned. Zephyr, however, was caught by the vicious cat and pinned down with a paw to the throat, the cat on top of him.

"Zephyr," cried Aurora as she struggled in the paws of two cats. Zephyr then looked around and found himself gazing into a pair of sadistic brown eyes.

"Where do you think YOU'RE going you little feathered gemstone?" crooned the grey cat evilly. Zephyr only replied with a timid gasp but found it hard to breathe with the cat's paw on his neck.

"Whassup, bird?" continued the cat in a taunting way, "Freedom just snatched out of your grasp by a cat's paw? Well, I'm afraid that's true 'cos you ain't goin' anywhere... except out of Brazil in a cage".

"Brutus," commanded Frank, "Can you bring that macaw back to the cage before you even think about harming it?"

The cat, named Brutus, looked at Frank and then back at Zephyr.

"Or should I say, 'you're returnin' to your cage' first?" said the menacing cat and with that, he picked Zephyr up by the neck, dragged him back to the table and tossed him into the cage. Seconds later, Aurora was thrown in, followed by Brisa, D'Artagnan and then Sapphire.

After Sapphire was thrown into the cage, the chaos in the room subsided. The poachers, despite being covered in bite and scratch marks from Dash, and their cats despite them being dazed by the inferno, were glad for this, and also that the seven macaws had been captured. Although some of their captured birds had escaped, those birds didn't matter. All that mattered was the fact that all seven macaws had been caught and prevented from escaping. Then Vera prepared to toss Levi back into the cage with the Spix and Lear's macaws when Frank stopped her.

"Wait, we still need to chain those two glaucous macaws together," said he, "Where's the female glaucous?"

The group looked around until they saw two cats hold Lapis Lazuli up. Lapis Lazuli was in a lot of pain and was grasping her wing. A small red blob had formed on her feathers as she grasped her right wing. It was clear she had been scratched much to the horror of the other macaws, and that had been Brutus's work. The cat had deliberately slashed his claws over the glaucous macaw's wing to knock her out of the air. However, Frank, Luke, Marvin and Vera showed no hint of concern for the injured macaw whatsoever and prepared to chain her to Levi nonetheless.

Marvin picked up Lapis Lazuli and held her close to Levi in Vera's hands. Levi gazed at Lapis Lazuli's clawed wing and her twisted face from the pain and shuddered, horrified at the poachers' cruelty. However, it was about to get worse, especially for these two last known glaucous macaws on earth. Then Luke raised the chain with the two rings on either end and attached one of the rings to Lapis Lazuli's right leg and the other to Levi's left leg. Levi squirmed in Vera's tight grip but Vera refused to loosen it. Then as soon as Luke had attached the chain to the two glaucous macaws' legs and shackled the pair together, Marvin and Vera shoved them back into the cage with the two Lear's and three Spix macaws and closed the door, job done. When Levi saw that he had been chained to Lapis Lazuli, he closed his beak on the silver thing and began to pull it off his ankle but to no avail. Lapis Lazuli, however, continued to hold her scratched wing in pain to notice that she had been chained to Levi. D'Artagnan saw the chain in horror while Aurora, Zephyr, Brisa and Sapphire sorted themselves out. Brisa had just come round from her crash into the wall as a result of Brutus' vicious attack on her while Phoebe, Ruby and Orquidea had been stuffed back into their cages. However, the macaws and Dash were not the only ones that had been captured.

Frank turned and saw that the cats had restrained also Veggie, Sunset and Travis with the calico restraining the first with a paw to the head against the floor.

"Well done, my cats," said Frank as he held Dash tight, "You've managed to apprehend the other pests. Now let's cage these four with the birds and we'll deal with them later."

And with that, he nodded to Marvin and Luke who took out more cages and within moments, Sunset and Travis were shoved into one cage, Veggie in another and Dash in a third. When Luke placed Veggie next to D'Artagnan, Aurora and the other five macaws' cage, Lapis Lazuli, Zephyr, Brisa and Sapphire backed away in fear. D'Artagnan and Aurora, however, gave Veggie an angry scowl.

"You could have been killed, Veggie, didn't you know that?" growled Aurora.

"We were only trying to rescue you," snapped Veggie. When Zephyr, Sapphire, Brisa and Lapis Lazuli saw Aurora and D'Artagnan interact with Veggie, they were filled in utter horror and appal.

"You're FRIENDS with that CITY CAT!?" shouted Zephyr.

"Look, we can explain," said Aurora. Then Brisa boiled with fury.

"We HATE you, you rotten PETS," shouted Zephyr's sister and with that, she hurled a glob of saliva n disgust right in front of Aurora much to her revulsion. Athos, Porthos, Aramis and Phoebe also eyed Veggie, Travis and Sunset angrily.

"Now look what you have got yourselves into, you foolish cockatoos and cat," shouted Athos, "You should have stayed back at Tulio's Aviary!"

Veggie, Travis and Sunset glared silently back at the scarlet macaw, the disappointment at their attempts in rescuing the birds being stymied boiling within them. Then Veggie flashed a nod to a certain pair of macaws.

"You'd better take a look at what those rotten humans have done to Levi and the female glaucous macaw," the tabby cat hissed. Athos, dread coming over him, turned and took one look at Levi and Lapis Lazuli and the silvery snake shackling them together. The moment his brown eyes saw the chain, the scarlet macaw trembled with fury.

"I'm gonna savagely claw those humans' faces in like a furious cat when we get out of here," he hissed thunderously.

"Leave that to me," said Aramis.

"Athos, Aramis, please," said Porthos. The two macaws calmed down but Athos was still furious and simmered in silence.

Then Frank congratulated his group, especially Brutus for stopping Zephyr, Brisa and Lapis Lazuli from escaping.

"Right, let's take this lot to the other room," he said, the step he and his poachers were desperate to resume before Dash made his explosive entrance. And with that, Marvin, Vera, Jack, Jill, Luke and the cats began to carry the cages to the other room. Jack carried D'Artagnan and the other six while Jill carried Athos, Aramis and Porthos. As the group entered the room, loud mournful squawking filled the macaws' ears. Athos and the others looked around with eyes widened in horror at the other birds the group of humans and their cats had caught earlier. A lot of them were kept in conditions the domestic pets could not even imagine. Some birds were stuffed into a cage too small for them like how Phoebe was but the looks on their faces and behaviour suggested one thing in common: they were all mournful, terrified and in despair. Athos and company had never seen such depressed looks on any animal at all but it was distressing to look at. Behind Jill, Vera carried Phoebe, again stuffed into a cage too small for her. Then as soon as Jack and Jill had found a spot to put the cages, they placed the caged macaws into that spot.

"Sorry, you lot," said Jack sadly to D'Artagnan, Aurora, Levi, Zephyr, Brisa, Sapphire and Lapis Lazuli, "But there's not much I can do."

The seven macaws only looked back at him with either scowls or sad faces. Jack then left to fetch another cage as Jill placed Athos, Aramis and Porthos next to them before leaving to get another cage. Then as soon as the other caged birds were brought into the storage room, the job was completed. Dash, Veggie, Travis and Sunset were also placed in the room by the door. After this, the humans and their cats left the room but not before Jack, Jill and the calico cat stole a look back at the macaws one last time before shutting the door.

"So, what are we going to do to those birds?" asked Jack to Frank, "I'm seriously concerned for them, especially for the two hyacinth macaws. Those cages aren't big enough for them at all."

"Also, what about those birds with the injuries they still have, in addition to those that had been hurt during the chaos, such as that glaucous macaw?" asked Jill. Frank shot the fraternal twins an irritated glare.

"Look, you two," he growled, "Let's just focus on the job in getting those birds prepared for selling abroad, okay? Earning some good money is more important than those birds. Now come on. Let's get something to eat and prepare for bed. We have a very busy day in the morning, especially from the interference caused by that stupid dog, unfamiliar cat and two cockatoos; ironic considering the fact that that donkey-faced pea-brain Marcel and his group had one."

Jack and Jill sighed and followed Frank into the living room. The calico cat, which was covered in scratches and bruises after fighting Veggie and her face laced with sadness and guilt, walked in.

"Catina," said Brutus, "Come on, our owners are going to prepare our dinner any moment."

The calico named Catina sighed and followed Brutus to the other room to prepare for dinner with the other cats. However, she began to voice her concern for the birds, Veggie and Dash.

"I'm with Jack and Jill, Brutus," said Catina, "Those birds look in a lot of distress."

"Look, just leave them," said Brutus, clearly unfazed by the worry, "And do what Frank says."

Catina sighed and reluctantly complied.