WINGS OF STEEL

Disclaimer: Whatever you didn't see in "The Immortals", I won. Fair?

Chapter One: Prescience

Zircah skulked behind Jokhun and glared at all those around her. Stone Tree nation had gathered together with other Stormwing nations in order to be told they were to recapture a mortal mage. Zircah, of course, knew all about the mage and his escape already. She knew far too much, in fact, for her own liking.

The mortal had been taken prisoner in the fief under the command of one Lord Sinthya. He had been spying on the lord for King Jonathan and Queen Thayet, but they had caught him in the act. Apart from this, he was a despised enemy of the Emperor Ozorne of Carthak. Zircah gritted her teeth and closed her eyes to refrain from betraying her fury.

Ozorne was the mortal mage who had summoned the Stormwings forth from their home in the Divine Realms. He had commanded their forces without resistance from Jokhun, something Zircah thought incredibly suspicious. Since when were Stormwings mastered by any but themselves? She thought it was ridiculous. However, she had no wish to lose her standing in the nation, so she kept silent. After all, it would be inconveniently difficult for her to murder Jokhun if she were no longer a part of the nation. It would be messy. Zircah didn't like things to be messy.

She opened her eyes and scanned the crowd for her mother. Zhaneh Bitterclaws had been infuriated by the loss of what she claimed had been her most beautiful eye to nothing but a mortal chick. Zircah smirked. She had every right to be indignant - whoever expected such a thing to happen? No one but she, who had foreseen Zhaneh's death. It was still to come, and by the same mortal, she supposed. Idly, she hoped she'd meet this mortal chick some day.

Abruptly, Zhaneh opened her mouth and let out a shrill cry of "SHUT UP!" that echoed around their gathering place. Semi-clear silver fluid made one half of her face shine as it ran slowly from her ruined eye. Zhaneh looked as forbidding as Zircah as she began to tell her tale of the escape of the mage and the insolent pig who had put her eye out.

Zircah let her mind drift. She knew. The importance of the events had drawn her Seer's Eye to them like a bee to honey. She had been there as a black hawk careened drunkenly out the barred window of a holding cell, drugged and panicky. She had heard the furious, deep-throated yells of a man she presumed was Sinthya for Stormwings to get the mage back. She had Seen the chocolate-haired mortal chick through Zhaneh's eyes, and felt excruciating pain as an arrow was loosed, as though in slow motion, towards her own eye. After a period of blackness so dark she was afraid she must have died, she Saw Zhaneh's bitter return to Fief Sinthya and watched as the staff of the small castle were mercilessly punished for 'their' lax in security. She watched through the horrified eyes of a young servant woman as the throats of the servants' children were slit one after the other until the floor swam with crimson. She had drawn back as far as she could from the ever-growing red stain, but her sandals were not sufficient to protect her feet from the puddle. The servant's horror and disgust was outmatched only by Zircah's own - not at the tasteless violence, but at the Stormwings who watched and did nothing. Zircah knew from the red globe around Zhaneh Bitterclaws' wing tip that Ozorne watched and was pleased by the obedience of his followers. Zircah felt only disgust.

That disgust returned to her as she listened to Zhaneh re-tell the story. Even the bold queen did not dare to relate the child murdering to the rest of the nations. She would have been put to death for such a heinous crime, as would all her nation. Perhaps she would be forgiven, whispered an insidious voice in Zircah's mind. After all, this is the Stormwing queen who abandoned her only child. Obviously others would believe she had lost her mind. They would pardon her on that count. But that would not avenge the children, nor will it bring back your queen.

Zircah tuned in again with a disinterested look at a speech-spell that Zhaneh had just activated. She watched boredly as Zhaneh spoke briefly with Ozorne and then closed down the gold-tinged crimson globe at her wing tip. She glanced about her and many of the Stormwings recoiled from the sight of her oozing eye.

"We will send the Spidrens after them. They were close by to where we saw the mortals camp. Send out a call for the Spidrens, and make sure they understand that they may kill all mortals but the mage." She smirked. "Him we want alive."

As hundred of Stormwings scattered back to their own nations, Zircah found she was as wearied as though she had been flying at her fastest all morning. As soon as she found a branch - as far away from any other Stormwings as possible - she closed her eyes and fell into a comatose slumber.

It was dark, but she could see everything almost perfectly. Her eyes were adapted for seeing edges she could catch a hold of, so everything she saw seemed outlined and indented and doubly shadowed. She crouched in the centre of her darkly glowing web and watched. She knew that the mortal child would come soon.

She watched as the girl emerged from one of the tents, carrying a bow. Smugly, she waited as Daine spoke to one of the sentries. He told her gently to stop worrying and go back to bed, but the girl stood staring at the woods with fear and confusion that was perfectly justified. As the mortal made her way slowly and hesitantly toward the trees, the watcher spun a loop of thread. It would take little effort to get rid of this mortal child, and then the camp would be unable to pinpoint the Spidren attack.

She almost hissed in annoyance as another mortal approached Daine.

She felt her vision double then separate entire from the Spidren's. The mortal girl sparkled amidst a tangle of copper fire, her bow held as though it was a natural extension of her body. The other was laced with violet light and had the face of the Goddess. As they moved closer to the Spidren's web, Zircah felt the Spidren tense. She sent out a shrieked call of warning she knew they wouldn't hear. Daine turned, and she knelt to examine a rabbit. She muttered something under her breath and hung her head. Zircah felt the Spidren prepare to attack, and shrieked again. The Spidren flung the loop of evilly glowing 'silk' at the girl, but her ears caught the rustle of its motion and she leapt back just in time. As the Spidren moved to attack them, the Daine's bow was up, an arrow to the string. It plunged through the Spidren's throat and everything went black.

She woke with a start and gasped for air, nearly toppling from her perch with the dizziness her sudden awakening had brought. The dim light of evening was oppressively bright to her eyes, and the sounds of Stormwings laughing and jeering at each other were more than she could bear at the time. She groaned, her head sinking to rest against the trunk of the tree. Seeing didn't usually bring such a heightening of senses, but she sincerely hoped they would go away soon, before she actually had to deal with any of her flockmates.

She kept her eyes closed until she felt an inrushing of wind. Then they snapped open and glared, despite the stabs of agony working their way through her skull. Zhaneh Bitterclaws sneered at her, and Zircah blinked.

"So. You're the little Seer-chick I threw from my nest all those years ago." Zircah felt mildly insulted at the disdainful look her mother was giving her. "I have to say I'm not at all impressed."

"Whatever gives you the impression I might care for your opinion, Bitterclaws?" Zircah returned, smirking at the queen's oozing eye socket and holding down the urge to be sick.

Zhaneh stared at her down her nose. "Do you still think that a mortal will be the death of me, a Stormwing queen, Zircah?"

Zircah returned her icy gaze evenly and straightened. She tried not to look smug upon discovering she was taller than Zhaneh. "My prophecies are never wrong. You'll still be murdered by a mortal. And I predict it to be that same mortal chick who gave you that disgusting mess for an eye."

Zhaneh's teeth were bared in a nasty grin. "Not after tonight, hatchling. The only thing that ground-pounder, Daine, will be killing is the insects that eat of her poisonous flesh."

Zircah closed her eyes and shrugged, a knowing smile decorating her slender features. "Whatever you say, mother." The eyes flickered open briefly to deliver a smug sideways glance, and then closed again. Zhaneh raised a wing in anger and was roughly knocked from Zircah's perch. "I shouldn't try to attack, were I you. Those who attack their betters often wind up in a whole pile of Tauros dung."

Zhaneh screamed in rage, but flew away back to her own nation. Zircah sighed. It was a pity her mother was so pathetic. Embarrassing, really, to be bested by your own daughter… though not as embarrassing as being bested by a mortal chick. It's a wonder she's still queen at all, really.

Zircah was hardly surprised when the Spidrens were found slain a week later. In fact, she was rather amused that mortals could have killed the trio. It was disgusting that immortals had become so weak and lax after only four centuries in the Divine Realms.

She sidled into place beside Rikash and maliciously jabbed him with her elbow-joint. The male wobbled and nearly fell off his branch. Zircah smiled serenely as Rikash glared. Jokhun looked back from his quiet conversation with Zhaneh to stare at them disapprovingly while the rest of their flock laughed hysterically. Rikash regained his balance and shoved her back - or tried to. Instead of resisting, she went with it, twirling gracefully around the branch and back to her perch. Rikash did fall off the branch, this time. Stone Tree nation howled with laughter, and was soon joined by the eerie cackling of Zhaneh's flock. Zircah smirked as Rikash, scarlet with embarrassment under his protective layer of smudged dirt, came flapping back to his perch. He moved far enough over that she couldn't reach him without being obvious about it and then sat there sulking. Zircah nearly giggled, but restrained the urge at the last minute and managed to reign her amusement into a wide and purely evil grin.

Jokhun returned to glare at Zircah and beckoned his nation closer so that he wouldn't have to strain his vocal cords.

"Queen Zhaneh and I have decided to launch an attack on the mortals who have spurned us. We will destroy all mortals save those Emperor Ozorne wishes to use." Jokhun informed them coolly. Zircah couldn't resist.

"Aren't they going to be at the palace in Corus, King Jokhun?" she asked sweetly. "That will be well-defended. Are you certain that will be our best course of action?"

Jokhun gave her a withering look. "We will attack while they are not expecting it, in the small hours of the morning. It is always darkest before dawn." He added smugly.

Well, duh, thought Zircah. That's because after dawn, the sun is up.

"Our nation is to attack the palace itself and recover the mage Numair Salmalín. Queen Zhaneh will attack the lower palace first in order to create a diversion and draw the palace guards to them."

And, no doubt, murder Veralidaine. Zircah frowned and pursed her lips in annoyance. Honestly, can she be any less subtle?

"My king, think you the mage Salmalín will not go to the lower palace?" she asked. "The mortals place strange importance in their kith. Salmalín is friends with the mortals that disfigured Bitterclaws and murdered the Spidrens we sent," she coughed slightly. "To avenge her."

Jokhun cocked his head to the side and considered briefly. "I do not believe it to be so. The mage will be fast asleep when we come for him. Our attack will not rouse him, nor many other mortal nobles that reside in the palace walls. It will be a thing of simplicity to recapture Salmalín."

Zircah nodded stiffly. Sure, sure. Whatever you say, my king, she thought scornfully. "It will surely be as you say, my king." She said aloud. Rikash, despite his sullen pouting, raised an eyebrow at her. When Jokhun shifted his attention elsewhere, she shot a sideways glance at the blonde Stormwing. He immediately looked away and sulked again. Zircah shook her head and stifled the urge to smile.

Well at least somebody realises that I'm up to something. Only think how disappointed I'd be if only I were to know, she reflected with a smirk.

Jokhun dismissed them shortly after. When the sun set they would fly for Corus and launch their attack on the palace of King Jonathan.

A/N: Thankyou to everyone for your reviews! I hope to hear from more than Stormwing fans reading this fic. :)