Sandalwood and his Friends and the Paradise Sanctuary- edited

by VPVPVP

Carla and company's trip to Rio goes badly wrong when some of their kids are caught by poachers. The kids get rescued and placed in a conservation area with various animals from around the world, but they soon suspect something off about the area. In Rio, Blu and the others must deal with another problem on the Blu Bird Sanctuary while figuring out a way to rescue the poached kids

41. 41- flight down memory forest

Chapter 41- a flight down memory forest

Back in Rio

The activities of Rio de Janeiro continued to flow by, both in the city and in the jungle. However, one aspect of the jungle was in the process of change. More and more toucans and the offspring and sons and daughters-in-law of Rafael and Eva were being captured and taken to Tulio's Aviary with Blu's group helping. In Pedra de Gavea cave, Andromeda and Rouge continued to look after Basil the bat and his colony. She had enlisted the help of Eustace, Milo, Rosa, Clemont, Serena and also Yolanda and Peach in searching for and providing the Linda's golden orange bat colony with fresh insects to make up for what they had missed over the time period when the toucan flock caused them trouble such as interfering with their prey-catching tasks. The group also helped the bats to watch out for any corvid birds that would dare intrude into the land with the intention of nabbing any of Toby and Velma's bat colony members for their poacher owners for the Linda's golden orange bat was an endemic (region-exclusive) species.

While Andromeda and the cockatoos helped the orange bats, the rest of Blu's group continued their tasks in helping Tulio and his team in catching more toucans and bringing them to the Aviary in cages for relocation while some of them looked after the remaining seven kids Sonia, Melody, Miles, Einstein, Byron, Diego and Ferdinand. To ensure that the tasks were fairly shared, Blu and company had set up a rotation schedule: some would stay with the remaining kids at Tulio and Linda's cottage while the others would help in catching more of the toucans plaguing the Blu Bird Sanctuary with Tulio and company, and while a few others took breaks. However, the burden of grief of missing the kidnapped kids including Sandalwood still gripped many of the members, especially Carla, Bia, Tiago and Stella and their respective mates Justin, Virgil, Matilda and Soren, and their efforts were somewhat hampered. Poinsettia and Wilbur and the others but especially the former two were also deeply troubled over Spinel and Sheldon's seemingly destroyed relationship and struggled to get over it but another tragedy had struck another particular bird family. Cometa, Lightning, Orion and Hermione, Spike and Zelda had been utterly devastated by the news of Merlin's demise as told from a deeply heartbroken Velocity. Merlin had sacrificed his life to prevent another theft at Tulio's Aviary involving a bunch of crows that nearly made off with the only two golden fruithawks in existence, and now Velocity had become widowed while Zelda had become fatherless. Because of this fresh grief, the falcon family had decided to drop out of the toucan task for some time and rest while they grieved the loss of Merlin with the other Control de Plagas Squad falcons and falcon-like birds who had been devastated by the news as well. It certainly was a very difficult time for everyone, especially since Sandalwood and the others' destination was still unknown. As for Rafael, along with Tom, Diantha and also Rita, Carlos and some of the toucans who were not badly behaved like the rest of Rafael and Eva's offspring, had moved to live with the other Blu Bird Sanctuary residents to escape being accidentally caught by Tulio and company as well as help the residents, and also Sheldon, avoid the poachers still roaming the outskirts of the Blu Bird Sanctuary to make up for their responsibility in causing this whole mess (excluding Diantha and Tom), while the rest of the group continued their task in helping Tulio and his team catch as many of the toucans plaguing the Blu Bird Sanctuary as possible to vastly reduce the population to a reasonable number.

One group was out searching for some toucan chicks in one part of the Blu Bird Sanctuary but they had decided to take a break from the task. Stella and Soren, together with Indigo, her mate Victor at home helping to look after the seven remaining kids; Frodo and Ellie the Cuban macaws, and Spyro who had decided to accompany them with his bat-bird Garnet, were trudging through the forest floor foliage. Ellie gazed sombrely at some butterflies as they flitted past the group while Frodo was distributing some insects, fruit and nuts he had collected and packed in a large leaf-bag before departing Tulio and Linda's cottage on this trail.

"Here," said the male Cuban macaw as he passed a small bag of bugs and grubs to Spyro, "Get these down you. You're gonna need it in case we get ambushed by any of those pesky toucan hoodlums."

Spyro took the bag and began to eat the bugs, while also giving them to his bat-bird who gladly ate them. Stella, Soren and Indigo also began to eat the fruit, nuts and remaining bugs.

"We've just had a call from the Sanctuary de Amazon from Jasmine's sisters Miranda and Annette this morning while you were taking Ferdinand and the Spix macaw chicks out," said Indigo to the Cuban macaws and the bats, "They say the tribes and clans are doing well in the Sanctuary de Amazon and have told us that Andromeda's clan has invented a new style of game for the Pit of Games."

"Oh, yes?" said Ellie with a small smile, the grief over the missing Sylvester briefly forgotten.

"What sort of game have they invented," asked Stella.

"I don't know if you've heard of the human book series Harry Potter," said Indigo, "There's a game in that series called 'Quidditch' where the wizards play ball in the air on their broomsticks. Well, the game that Andromeda's clan has invented is similar in some ways to that game. It's still like a soccer game but with additional factors added and modifications or changes made," Stella, Soren, Frodo, Ellie and Spyro then began to listen while Garnet admired some butterflies on some flowers, "Some team members pass the fruit ball to one another like in the human game of rugby and have to throw it into the opposing team's goal to score with a keeper to contend with; some team members have to ward off what Ophiuchus has called 'Distracter Birds', little birds that will try and confuse the players to hinder their progress, while one player from each team has to catch a highly agile dragonfly. The game ends if the set number of goals is reached with the fruit ball, or if the dragonfly is caught."

"That sounds quite creative," said Frodo, "That definitely sounds like that fictional game in that book series Bia told me and Ellie about."

"You've heard of that human's book series?" asked Indigo with surprise.

"No, but Carla, Bia and Tiago and some of the others including Justin, Charlotte, Matilda and Virgil have told me about these fantasy worlds humans have made up, and described that game called Quidditch from the books called 'Harry Potter'," said Frodo.

"Among other fantasy books like Chronicles of Narnia, which is Justin and his three siblings' favourite book series," said Indigo, "And also that of their two younger siblings, Aquamarine and Azurite."

"What's the name of the ball game?" asked Stella.

"It's called Pájarritch," said Indigo, "And the Sanctuary de Amazon inhabitants are currently playing that in the Pit of Games. The Lear's macaw tribe has just returned to their home patch after their match with the red macaw tribe, with the Lear's macaw tribe winning."

Smiles of intrigue rolled through the listeners.

Ahead of the birds and bats, Garnet continued exploring the surroundings, emitting hearty chirps but as her delightful gaze travelled in a certain direction that delight vanished in a heartbeat.

"I would love to participate in that new game when we return after our missing kids have been found," said Frodo, and at that his face fell as he thought about Sylvester, "I sure hope that they haven't been taken to a place that is too far…"

"I hope so, too," said Spyro in agreement, "I hope Bambi is alright…"

Indigo, Ellie, Stella and Soren nodded in agreement when suddenly, a short screech from a bat-bird reached their ears, jolting the six into snapping their gaze at Garnet. When they saw Spyro's bat-bird stand rooted to the spot gazing at something, her pycnofibres on end, Frodo and Spyro rushed over.

"What is it, Garnet?" asked the latter. Garnet, her eyes inflated by fear and their beak wide open, shakily pointed a wing-claw at what she had spotted. As she did this, Indigo, Stella, Ellie and Soren ran in and followed the startled bat-bird's gaze and point but the moment their gazes landed on what has frightened Garnet, the three macaws, two flying foxes and the archaeobird all stiffened but within Indigo, disgust and hostility also flared up, making her navy and blue feathers bristle.

Ahead of the group of seven was a familiar bundle of ragged grey-white feathers and scar-streaks which were similar in colour to Stella's grey-white wings but with a very ugly aspect and he appeared to be taking a mud bath, humming to himself. His ragged pale yellow crest lay flat against his head and his brown eyes, each with a bag of reddish skin hanging from under them and tiger-stripe-like scars running around them and his beak were focussed on his bath. Lying beside the rim of the mud puddle in which the cockatoo was bathing in was a blue and black cloth for he had found a replacement to conceal the unsightly mess on his torso, a testimony to his disaster with a plane years ago. Frodo and Ellie had been told by Blu and Jewel of a highly infamous cockatoo who used to smuggle and torture birds, named Nigel. Spyro, Stella and Soren and also Garnet had also been told about Nigel but they, along with Ellie and Frodo, had never seen the hideous cockatoo in the flesh, but Indigo indeed had. She had first seen the cockatoo when she had been a chick with her brother Zebedee and parents Cobalto and Phoebe and had been traumatised by his abuse during a certain time, hence her hostility-laced glare at the cockatoo and her bristled feathers.

Spyro, Stella and Soren and Garnet, Frodo and Ellie continued gazing at the hideous cockatoo as he continued to roll about like a dog in the mud puddle and spread more of the brown stuff all over his tattered and scarred plumage with his tattered wings and humming to himself, currently unaware of seven pairs of shocked eyes, one laced with bitter hostility, gawking at him. After a moment of silence, Stella finally broke it.

"Isn't that…?" she began but her throat was too stiff from fear and stun to form more words. Indigo shot the albino flying fox a confirmatory glare to answer her question.

"Yes, it's that infamous Nigel the cockatoo," she hissed, "The cockatoo who loved to torture birds and cause them no end of misery, especially during the smuggling process," her fiery blue-violet glare returned to Nigel as he continued to bathe in the mud puddle, "He's Blu and Jewel's nemesis, and the nemesis of numerous other birds including our own parents. He's a sorry state and a horrid piece of work, he is."

Stella gazed at Indigo with surprise. Frodo, Ellie, Soren and Spyro, and also Garnet then glared at Nigel with disgust laced faces. These five had already taken an immediate disliking to the cockatoo and Garnet also whimpered and backed away at the sight of the hideous scarred bird.

"He's disgusting!" hissed Ellie repulsively, her red and colourful feathers bristling.

"We may sometimes use mud to conceal ourselves whenever we need to, such as camouflage from predators," said Soren, "But him… he seems to use mud differently."

"He looks as though he hadn't slept for days," added Spyro, commenting on Nigel's bloodshot eyes. Ellie, however, wanted to get away from the cockatoo as soon as possible for she felt completely unsafe around that scarred monster.

"Never mind about that," the female Cuban macaw grumbled, "Let's get out of here before he sets his eyes…"

But before the entire sentence could leave her beak, a scornful, hostile, "Well, well, well, what do we have here? A bunch of pesky pretty birds dropping by to watch me have a delightful bath?" sounded. That voice tone's freezing temperature froze the group of seven winged animals and slowly, they all turned and faced the mud-covered, scarred cockatoo, his brown eyes laced with scorn and hostility glaring menacingly at them. However, the moment those eyes found the familiar hyacinth macaw, the cockatoo's ragged feathers, including those on his head, fanned out. Indigo then began to shudder, her blue-violet eyes set ablaze with wrath and sheer mutual dislike as they made contact with Nigel's scornful brown pair. Then hostility flared on the cockatoo's face and showed itself in his voice tone.

"I hope you're still laughing about me, my tatty plumage and also my inability to fly after what those good-for-nothing blue slime-worms Blu and Jewel have done to me all those years ago, are you!?" snarled the cockatoo as his acidic dislike-saturated pair of brown eyes continued to bore into Indigo, the older daughter of Cobalto and Phoebe, Nigel's most detested hyacinth macaws and birds besides Blu, Jewel, Zephyr, Aurora, D'Artagnan, Athos and the rest of the gang including their offspring, and he was certainly not hesitant in giving Indigo a piece of his mind, and he had that in his head in fact.

Indigo continued to shake with rage, the urge to lunge at Nigel to slash the mocking glare off the cockatoo's scarred face threatening to erupt. Then Nigel's hostile glare travelled to some unfamiliar figures flanking the hyacinth macaw and began to examine them. As Nigel scoured his glare over Frodo, Ellie, Spyro, Stella and Soren, and Garnet, he formed a wicked grimace on his beak.

"So you seem to have brought a variety of some little new friends with you, hyacinth rat," he crooned mockingly, before his brown glare began to rake over the newcomers again, starting with Frodo.

"I see you've got two smelly scarlet macaws; vile cockroaches they are," crooned Nigel with disgust lacing his mocking voice tone. Frodo and Ellie's glares flashed to a look of utter outrage at this insult. Nigel's eyes then travelled to Stella and Soren, "A pair of... disgusting lab RATS with wings on STEROIDS," he growled, striking outrage into Stella and Soren as they were burned by the remark, especially by the word 'rat'. Then Nigel's glare travelled to Spyro, who picked up a stick and pointed it threateningly at the cockatoo, and Garnet who ducked behind her rider. Nigel hardened his gaze as he examined the archaeobird's wing-like legs and solid semi-moveable tail and also the little pterosaur behind him, "And that… odd lookin' feathered creature that resembles something straight out of a Jurassic Park movie, along with one of them extinct flyin' lizards from the dinosaur era!?" Spyro spiked his metallic purple feathers and released a threatening hiss, his stick aiming at Nigel. Nigel then widened his spiteful smile, "It sure looks like you've been busy meetin' new birdies and animals, overgrown dark blue daughter of that feathered (bleep) Phoebe and her worm-headed mate Cobalto…"

"Don't you DARE insult my parents, you vile, crested VULTURE!" snapped Indigo volcanically, her wings shooting out but she barely managed to restrain launching herself at Nigel to slash the scornful smile off the horrible and scarred cockatoo's face. Stella and Soren rolled their eyes while Ellie and Frodo began to tremble with rage. The Cuban macaw couple clearly did not like this cockatoo insulting their friend's family, and Spyro and Garnet continued to glare at Nigel with disgust. Nigel, however, released a mocking laugh at Indigo's temper.

"You sure are testy, ain't ya, as you had been as a lickle chick," he crooned, "An' I sure hope you find me as frightening as you did when you were that age! Been havin' nightmares about me lately? I hope so 'cos you know how FRIGHTENING I can beeeeee!"

Soren and Stella stepped forward at this bragging statement, especially as the cockatoo topped it off with a snigger.

"I am NOT a chick anymore, crested slime-mold," snapped Indigo hostilely but then she saw two flying foxes step towards her parents' nemesis.

"Frightening!?" snapped Stella mockingly and with a snarky glare, "From where we're standing, you look like a cockatoo that had been dragged through one of those spinning spinny things the human-familiar animals call a propeller…"

"Yeah, especially your crest," put in Soren, before the flying fox took the opportunity to comment on Nigel's scars despite disgust at the sight of them boiling within him, "Not to mention the fact that you've probably been in a fight with some macaws..."

These statements stung Nigel like a scorpion sting, and Indigo could see the cockatoo's hostility-laced scowl as he glared at the albino flying fox and her mate. Then Nigel rose out of the mud bath and sauntered towards the two flying foxes. Spyro ducked and aimed his stick at the hulking feathered beast covered in mud as he approached the group.

"So you think it's funny to poke fun at the most tragic events of my life at the talons of those two blue feathered slime-balls, that propeller and when they clawed me to a bloody pulp 'cos I picked on their friends and chicks, eh, winged rats?" growled the cockatoo fiercely, "And you think I'm not frightening?" his scowl then melted to a mocking glare once again. Turning his back on the two bats, walking two steps from them and then turning to face them again, "Well, let's see, shall we?"

He then gazed menacingly at Stella and Soren, "What do you think of this?"

Then following this question, Nigel flared his crest, inflated his eyes out of their sockets and released an extremely loud screech. Stella and Soren flinched and screamed in horror while Indigo, Ellie, Spyro and Frodo jumped a foot into the air. Garnet dived into a patch of ferns nearby, frightened at Nigel's face. Nigel then withdrew his terrifying appearance and resumed his mocking stance, giggling at the group's startled reaction, especially at Indigo.

"Just as I thought," crooned the cockatoo, "You lot are a bunch of cowards, as always, like those good-for-nothing, lousy prisoners I used to help smuggle out of Brazil, including that snivelling pigtailed Spix macaw and her little Lear's friend when they were young!" his glare then turned specifically to Indigo, "Especially you, little dark blue-feathered rat-faced brat!"

And with that, he burst out laughing. Indigo and company, however, were not amused. Then Stella and Soren's eyes travelled to Nigel's black and blue vest as it lay aside of the mud puddle. They were not going to listen to Nigel's insults about their friends and as they gazed at the vest, an idea entered their head and they slowly slipped out of Nigel's range of vision as the cockatoo focussed on Indigo once again.

"Speaking of smuggling, I heard that some kiddies have been snatched from some certain birds lately," he crooned. This hit an exposed nerve of the group and Indigo's face fell as the memories of Sugilite, her and Victor's daughter getting kidnapped by those smugglers, came flooding back. Spyro Frodo and Ellie also bowed their heads as they felt the painful grief over the loss of Bambi and Sylvester well up within them as well. Tears then welled in their eyes.

"Ah, I thought so as well," crooned Nigel as he relished the saddened and tearful faces of his most detested creatures on the planet, "I sure l-u-u-u-u-u-urve hearing stories of happy pretty bird families getting ripped apart and the resulting heartbreak that comes with it," he finished this sentence with a scoffing titter. Then Indigo felt that enough was enough. Putting her grief aside, she glared at Nigel once again.

"We don't have time to talk with a former bother like you," she hissed, "We've got more important things to worry about," she then started to walk away, the others, including Garnet under Spyro's command, following her.

"Oh, yeah? Like what?" asked Nigel oily, pulling the group's attention back to him, "Goin' out and findin' your lost kiddies or sommat? Yeah, that sounds like fun. It sure is laughable to see you pretty birdies so down in the dumps!" Nigel's face then twisted into a scowl, "It stinks to see you pretty birds so happy and full of life."

Spyro, offended by this, stormed over to the cockatoo. As he approached the hideous parrot, his nostrils caught a whiff of smelly aroma emanating from Nigel's body. The archaeobird's face twisted into a repulsed look from the foul smell.

"Ugh, and I think YOU stink because it seems that you've not had a proper bath in perhaps years!" snorted Spyro in revulsion, "When was the last time you had one of those!?"

Nigel flashed the archaeobird a glare while Indigo, Ellie and Frodo wrinkled their beaks at Spyro's question, dreading the answer while Garnet looked on at Nigel in amusement, hiss-laughs escaping her beak at his reaction.

"You're probably the smelliest cockatoo I had ever MET!" continued Spyro, his wing-claws on his hips in disapproval, much to Nigel's amusement but that smile was stripped after Spyro's next choice of words, especially as his snout-like beak widened into a mocking smile. "I think Blu and Jewel ought to dunk ya into a pond of clean water, don't you think?" crooned the archaeobird, much to Indigo's alarm, and it was clear that Spyro had deliberately chosen to mention he cockatoo's two most DETESTED macaws on the planet. That did it. The trigger to Nigel's explosive temper sent hot rage burning through the cockatoo and turning his blood into pure magma.

"HOW DARE YOU MENTION THE NAMES OF THOSE TWO NEMESES, you PUTRID…" bellowed the cockatoo and with that, he crouched and launched himself into the air, his talons outstretched to slash Spyro but before his talons could make contact, a pair of macaw talons had darted in, seized the archaeobird by the shoulders and pulled him away in time, sending Nigel flying right into a patch of thorny vines while Indigo dragged Spyro to a safe distance, an unsympathetic glare on the cockatoo. Screeches of pain erupted from the cockatoo as he began to writhe in the pile of green snakes laced with needles only to get his wings, body and talons entangled into them and the needles to bite into his flesh. During this, Nigel shot Indigo's group a volcanic glare.

"I'm gonna FLAY YOU, YOU GOOD-FOR-NOTHING bunch OF…" he bellowed and with that, a torrent of vitriolic threats and insults spewed from the cockatoo's beak like the venom of a spitting cobra. As these caustic words battered them, Indigo, Spyro, Garnet, Frodo and Ellie scrambled to take to the air and beat a hasty retreat, but Indigo snapped round and surged back at the cockatoo to issue him a parting shot.

"If you EVER bother us again, you rotting, scar-faced plucked chicken," she hissed directly in the vile cockatoo's face, "I'll NOT hesitate to call in Uncle Blu and Auntie Jewel and have them turn you into a clawed mess like last time."

And with that, she hurled a glob of saliva directly into his face and topped her parting shot with a vicious talon swipe to the same area. Nigel's head was thrown in the direction of the hyacinth macaw's swipe, a scratch appearing on his right cheek. After this, Indigo darted off after the other four. Nigel glared rancorously after the five as they flapped or glided away, especially Indigo as she stole one last acidic glare at him, as he clutched his scratched and bleeding cheek and shuddered with wrath. Then Indigo took the opportunity to add the topper to Nigel's wounded pride and a snide smile formed on her beak. Like Blu and Jewel and so many others in her gang, especially Carla, Bia and Tiago, Indigo absolutely DETESTED the cockatoo's guts and often loved to mock him.

"Hmm, I think that new scratch on your vile face suits you, flightless freak and lovely boyfriend of that frog," she crooned, and to add insult to injury, she emitted her own replication of Nigel's signature laugh when Nigel flinched violently at that comment's caustic sting, much to the cockatoo's utmost outrage.

"You GOOD-FOR-NOTHING... LITTLE..." bellowed the cockatoo but Indigo had already flown after the other four. Nigel, giving up and still OUTRAGED at the hyacinth macaw's mockery, returned to his mud puddle, hissing vitriolic threats about Indigo and what he would like to do to her in revenge for her mockery of him. However, as he did, he noticed that his black and blue vest which he had taken off and put aside before plunging into the mud bath had disappeared.

"WHERE'S MY VEST!?" bellowed the cockatoo. He got his answer when he saw two forms, one white and the other a golden orange with black sheets, hover nearby. Nigel shot the two flying foxes a caustic glare as they hover in the air, the white one's feet clinging onto the thing he was looking for.

"Oh, we're sorry, looking for this, Crested Scarface?" crooned Stella mockingly.

"We thought you didn't need it," added Soren, "After all, you LOATHE anything with bright colours. Plus you look silly with it on anyway."

"HEY, GIVE THAT BACK, you pair of OVERSIZED… DOG-FACED…" bellowed Nigel and with that, the hulking cockatoo shook off the thorny snakes and began to chase after the two flying foxes, ignoring the pain of his pricked and jabbed talons, wings and torso. Soren and Stella, mischievous grins on their faces, then darted away with Nigel's vest in tow.

"If you want it, you'd better take off and get it," shouted Stella teasingly. Nigel, rage burning through him, opened his wings and tried to take off but because his feathers were so tatty, as always, he could not get airborne. Nigel's talons heaved the rest of his body off the ground and his wings flapped but the cockatoo plummeted back to earth again, landing on his front, much to the laughter of the two bats. Nigel tried again and the same thing happened. Tried a third time but failed at that as well, much to the flying fox couple's laughter. Then Nigel's eyes erupted into brown firestorms and he sprang to his feet. He then charged through the dense vegetation like an enraged bull.

"When I GET HOLD OF YOU TWO WINGED RATS," he bellowed, slapping away every fern frond and dodging any stick and stone that came his way, "I'M GONNA HAVE YA FOR DINNER… ALIVE!"

Stella and Soren flashed a repulsed glance at the cockatoo when this treat reached their ears and continued flying on.

"Blu and Jewel weren't kidding about that cockatoo's disgusting nature," said Stella, "He's honestly sick in the head."

"Well, I'm not gonna let that stupid bird torture or threaten us OR our brightly coloured feathered friends," said Soren with a glare. Just then the sound of rushing water reached his ears, making the flying fox shoot a glance ahead. An idea entered his head.

Nigel continued his relentless chase through the vegetation after the two flying foxes. Through the trees along the side, some feathered forms were flying. Ellie, Frodo, Indigo and Spyro on his bat-bird Garnet were flying along, watching Stella and Soren in astonishment, especially as Stella carried Nigel's vest away, and Indigo was smirking at the scene.

"Seriously, what are you two doing!?" the hyacinth macaw called, amusement saturating her voice. Stella and Soren, however, were too engrossed in the thrill of the chase that they did not hear Indigo's question. Frodo, Ellie, Spyro and Garnet were also saturated with amusement at the whole chase and Garnet was emitting squeaky laughs.

"Mr Blu and Mrs Jewel are gonna go hysterical when they hear about this," tittered Indigo to the others, though she was also wary of the safety of the two flying foxes as they continued to taunt the dangerous bundle of feathers that was Nigel. The chase continued right up to a river that ran through the forest, and Stella and Soren, with Nigel's vest in the former's clawed feet, flew right over it. With their mouths widened by mischief, Stella called out, "Come and get it, cockatoo!" and waved the vest in her feet to taunt Nigel as he exploded from some ferns bordering the river's bank. Nigel, with an enraged screech, spread his tattered wings and, with his eyes focussed on the only cloth that concealed the unsightly mess on his torso which still existed despite all these years, began to flap his wings madly in an attempt to take off. Indigo looked on and knew what was going to happen next as Nigel launched himself into the air from a rock jutting from the bank. Nigel then attempted to fly at Stella and Soren to grab back his vest but, as always, due to his tattered wings, he began to plummet but not back onto solid ground, but into shallow water, just as he was within a metre from the flying foxes… and his precious vest. Nigel screamed and flapped madly to as he descended towards the river below, flapping like mad to stay aloft but to no avail. Stella and Soren, along with Indigo, Frodo, Ellie, Spyro and Garnet, watched on as Nigel finally plunged into the water in a massive splash.

After the spray had subsided, Nigel's head rose out of the water, and then his body but because the suit of mud had been washed away by the rushing water, Nigel's tattered torso plumage was exposed. Spyro's beak then widened into a grin as the archaeobird watched Nigel gaze horrified at his waterlogged plumage, his crest drooping limply at the back of his head and his feathers sagging.

"That's what I'm talking about," he tittered, "A bath for that smelly cockatoo."

"Indeed," said Indigo but then the urge to put some distance between herself and her group and Nigel as soon as possible arose. Thus the hyacinth macaw, the archaeobird on his bat-bird, the two Cuban red macaws and also the two flying foxes with Nigel's vest in their clutches, then began to make their way back to Tulio and Linda's cottage. Nigel then began to protest after them.

"Hey, give me back MY VEST!" he bellowed, his sodden crest feathers struggling to rise, "I NEED THAT!"

Stella and Soren flashed a nonchalant glance back at him.

"Buddy," said Soren, "This silly vest doesn't suit you at all."

"Yeah, absolutely," said Stella. And with that, the two flying foxes disappeared into the green vegetation with Nigel's vest in tow, leaving Nigel to erupt into yet another temper tantrum, vitriolic words and curses erupting like magma from his beak while the cockatoo began to thrash and writhe as though he was having an electric shock, sending sprays of water flying everywhere.

Sometime later, Nigel had managed to haul himself out of the river. His sodden feathers drooped and the humiliation resulting from Stella and Soren's taking of his vest burned within the cockatoo, and he was trembling with pure rage. However, that rage soon turned to horror when he heard a camera flash, followed by a "HAH-HAH!" Nigel looked up and to his horror; he was confronted by a pack of small primates of a species familiar to him. All the primates had grey or brown fur with white tufts of fur on their heads. They were tailed but all of them were armed with human devices Nigel recognised as cameras and Ipods. And these little monkeys were snapping images of the poor, vest-less cockatoo and roaring with laughter. In desperation, the cockatoo, a horrified screech exploding from his beak, hastily dived behind a bush to conceal his tattered torso plumage as the marmosets continued snapping pictures of him and laughing.