Revenge
Chapter 13: Battle
David stuck two of his finger in his mouth and let out a piercing whistle.
"What's the point of that?" Cherry asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Freefall."
~*~
Freefall snorted. As if he needed his rider's warning! Sharpbeak stared up at the sky looking at the pterandons intently trying to pick out weaknesses.
'Longwing's flock?' Freefall squawked.
Sharpbeak gave out a piercing screech, pterandon speech for 'yes'.
'Never seen them before,must be newcomers then.'
'Ready to give old Longwing a headache?' Sharpbeak said wickedly.
Freefall twisted his beak into a pterandon smile.
'Let's go.'
"CREEEEEEE!!!"
With a fierce war cry the pterandons launched into the air. The trio of enemy pterandons screeched a challenge and dived at them, their wings folded back for maximum speed.
Freefall and Sharpbeak easily dodged the pterandons as they shot past. The duo wheeled around and was immediately onto the enemy, their sharp beak leaving bleeding cuts on the pterandons' back.
The trio screeched in anger and whirled around in midair forming a V formation as they swooped at Sharpbeak and Freefall. They managed to split the duo apart as two pterandons peeled off from the formation. Freefall had to perform a hasty barrel roll to avoid crashing into one of the buildings as the pterandon pursuing him screeched in victory lashing out at him with its deadly beak. Freefall veered off sharply to the left, smirking as he heard his opponent's surprised squawks.
Sharpbeak dived and weaved around the buildings trying to throw his pursuer off but the pterandon was everywhere slashing at him with its beak. Sharpbeak snapped his beaks together in frustration as his pursuer continued to inflict tiny bleeding cuts on his back. His attacker sneered at him as it continued its onslaught of cuts and bruises. The pterandon screeched in triumph before Freefall attacked from behind savagely attacking its wings. With a loud screech pain the pterandon fell from the sky landing in a heap on the ground.
"CREEEEEE!!!!"
The duo pursued the pterandon Freefall had managed to shaken off. Their enemy attempted to jabbed at Freefall but it was all in vain. Sharpbeak slashed at Freefall's attacker aiming for its vulnerable back. It arched its back in pain as Freefall whirled around in mid-air and faced his attacker. The pterandons boxed their enemy in slashing mercilessly with their beaks.
"CREEEEEEE!!!!!"
~*~
Cherry breathed a sigh of relief as Sharpbeak's attacker was put out of action. Cherry winced almost feeling sorry for the pterandon. No doubt Longwing had threatened it with death before it agreed to this crazy suicide attack on the Earth Farm. She gritted her teeth as she remembered the cruel but demented pterandon who had held her captive. And speaking of demented...
"DAVID!" Karl yelled.
David and Cherry whirled around as the cloaked kidnapper rummaged around in his cloak.
"Time for you to die..." he chanted in a singsong voice.
"Put your hands where I can see them!" David barked.
"Where did you get that off?" Cherry wanted to know, "A cop show?"
The cloaked man laughed dementedly as he held up his hands. Something was clutched tightly in his gloved fingers. Something long and sharp. Something metal. A knife.
He held the knife so the tip was pointing down to the ground. What for? Surely he wasn't going to stab the stone floor... was he? Cherry wouldn't put it past the crazy kidnapper.
"DIE!"
Luckily Karl figured out what he was doing before Cherry or David did. The stranger leapt at Marion who was still lying on the ground, knocked out. Karl was quicker though and managed to grab his arm before Samantha's kidnapper planted a knife in Marion's chest.
Instincts kicked in and Cherry joined into the fray. Ignoring the pain in her right leg she lashed out knocking the knife from the stranger's grip. Another solid kick sent him sprawling on the ground. Karl grabbed the stranger's shoulder and hauled him up.
"Why did you kidnap them?" he growled shaking the man.
The cloaked figure laughed and yanked himself out of Karl's grip.
"I work for the Master!" he crowed.
Cherry had had enough.
"Tell us!"
"NEVER!" he charged at her determined to get his hands around her neck.
Cherry's reflexes came into play and she performed a simple self-defence move. Taking the man's outstretched arm in her hands she used his speed against him throwing him over her head. Too bad the door was behind her.
She literally threw the man out of the door with a scream of rage the man hit the ground. Everybody could hear each distinctive thump as he tumbled down the stairs. Cherry winced as she heard the sickening crunch when the cloaked attacker made it to the bottom. Silence reigned in the tower.
"What?" Cherry asked looking around, "What did you want me do?"
Nobody answered as Zippo stared at her in shock.
'Where did you learn to do that?' 26 asked curiously.A piercing screech reminded them of the aerial battle outside. Cherry dashed to the window and prayed Sharpbeak was all right.
He had to be.
~*~
Sharpbeak was beginning to feel sorry for the enemy pterandon as Freefall kept it pinned against one of the buildings using his beak to wear out his opponent. Flying higher up into the air Sharpbeak spotted something that made him smirk.
"CRACK!"
Even with his better-than-human eyesight Freefall could only see a brown blur as a long muscular tail came down. The other pterandon had no idea what had hit it as the tail smashed into its head. With a screech of surprise it joined its partner on the ground.
Now brachiosaurs were generally placid mannered saurians. They were gentle giants but when their tempers were aroused it was every saurian for itself. The large female brachiosaur grunted in satisfaction as she flexed her long tail daring any other pterandons to come within her range.
'One left,' Sharpbeak called.
'I know.' Freefall said tersely.
They sped around the buildings senses alert.
'There!' Sharpbeak screeched.
Freefall dived down at it but it was too fast managing to avoid Freefall's flailing beak. Sharpbeak was immediately on the remaining pterandon trying to drive it close to the buildings but the remaining pterandon was smarter and more skilled than its companions. It turned sharply almost causing Sharpbeak to smash into a building.
'You'll never beat me!' it crowed in triumph.
Freefall flew out from around a building screeching in fury.
'Fool! You think you can defeat us?' he snarled as he engaged the enemy pterandon in combat.
Sharpbeak stayed back gliding on the warm thermals as he watched the battle intently. Freefall had the upper hand, jabbing and slashing with its beak, buffeting his enemy with powerful flaps of his wing. The other pterandon refused to give up, trying as best as it could to keep up with Freefall's fierce attack.
Slowly but steadily the albino pterandon managed to drive its opponent back. The enemy pterandon didn't realise Freefall's plan until it was too late.
"CREEEEEEE!" it screeched in pain as the female brachiosaur let out a loud bellow of triumph. She whipped her tail up and then brought it down at an amazing speed hitting the remaining pterandon in the chest. The pterandon managed to let out a laboured gasp of pain before it fell to the ground moaning slightly.
'Longwing must be confident if he sends his lackeys to attack the Earth Farm,' Sharpbeak commented. 'Or he's crazy.' 'True, I reckon it won't be long before the flock turns on him.' 'But right now he's a threat to Dinotopia...' Freefall sounded worried, 'A threat like no other...' ~*~"Oh thank god, they won," Cherry muttered.
David remained silent staring down at the trio of pterandon lying on the ground. Each one seemed to be okay just knocked out for the time being. Karl was kneeling beside Marion trying to undo the ropes tied around her hands.
"I'll give the kidnapper this," Karl muttered, "He can tie a knot."
"Maybe this'll help?" Cherry limped to the knife she had kicked out of the stranger's hands and handed it to Karl.
Karl accepted it with a grunt and began sawing the thick rope with it. It wasn't long before the sharp blade did its work.
"I wonder if the kidnapper is okay," Cherry murmured gesturing towards the open door, "I hope I didn't hurt him too badly."
"I hope you snapped his neck," Karl growled as he moved to Samantha, "It's no more than what he deserves."
"Still we got to see who he is," David walked to the door, "Coming?"
Cherry grimaced as she attempted to join him.
"You go. My leg is a bit sore."
David glanced at her worriedly.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Cherry flapped her hands at him, "Go!"
David started down the stairs as 26 scampered to join him. Zippo, Cherry and Karl waited in silence as David made it to the bottom.
"David? Have you unmasked him yet?
"No..." David's voice was shaky.
"Why?" Cherry demanded frantically, "I didn't kill him, did I?"
26 honked.
Cherry sighed in relief.
"Thank god I didn't kill him."
A long string of chirps and hoots resounded through the tower.
"What do you mean gone?" Cherry yelled down to 26.
Zippo looked at her confused.
"What did she say?"
Cherry stared at him, shocked. Her emerald eyes were puzzled.
"She said he's gone. He's vanished into thin air."