Dinotopia
Revenge
Chapter 20: Lessons
Cherry was unusually silent at the dinner table. Zippo looked up at her studying her with his intelligent eyes.
"Cherry, what's wrong?" he asked breaking the silence.
"Sharpbeak. I'm worried about him," Cherry confessed in a small voice.
Zippo smiled at her sympathetically.
"Don't worry, he is being well-treated. I'm sure he's perfectly fine."
Cherry scowled at the table.
"Then why can't I see him?" she demanded.
Zippo sighed and gave her a helpless shrug.
"The Senate doesn't want you to see him as of yet. They're currently asking him questions before the trial."
"That's the other thing!" Cherry suddenly exploded, "They shouldn't be putting him on trial!"
"Don't worry, the Senate is just and fair. No harm shall come to Sharpbeak," Zippo reassured him.
Cherry suddenly stood up and threw her fork down. She stalked out of the room and into the hallway. She stopped suddenly in front of one of the doors.
"Cherry are you sure you are alright about this?" Zippo asked worriedly.
"I'll be fine," Cherry told him with a small smile, touched by his concern, "Now goodnight."
With that Cherry stepped into her room and closed her door. Thankfully Zippo had been kind enough to let Cherry stay in his house. But Cherry felt there was an ulterior motive in him letting her stay. But it was much better than sleeping outside so Cherry tried not to dwell on it too much. She shrugged and got into bed.
"Goodnight," Zippo's voice was slightly muffled by the wooden door.
Just before she drifted off to sleep she could hear Zippo's footsteps as he walked away.
"Goodnight," she said sleepily.
With that she fell into a dreamless sleep.
"No, Marion. I refuse to talk about it anymore!" the Mayor said firmly to his daughter.
"But father, was it wise to strip Oonu of his leadership?" Marion questioned her father, "Thank the code that the sunstones at Canyon City are holding the pterandons back. If it wasn't for them the pterandons would be attacking us right now."
The Mayor was silent as Marion stared at his father expectantly waiting for a reply. Suddenly it hit her. She stared at her father in shock as she attempted to make sense of what his silence meant.
"The sunstones... they're gone... aren't they?" she asked quietly.
Mayor Waldo sighed and rubbed his temple.
"I received a postal bird saying that the Sentinels have fallen. I have already dispatched a team of land riders to investigate," Waldo said shortly.
Marion gawked at her father not quite understanding.
"What do you mean fallen?"
"I do not know how and what exactly the cryptic message meant but hopefully the land riders can find out," the Mayor looked at his daughter worriedly, "Marion..."
"Yes father?"
"Please keep this to yourself. I do not want mass panic... especially at this time of the year."
Marion nodded and put down her fork. Suddenly she didn't have any appetite left.
"You know something don't you?'
Frank Scott looked at his younger son evenly.
"Even if I did know. You know very well I can't tell you."
David sighed in frustration, he knew that it was no point in trying to get it out of his father. His father had refused to tell him who would replace Oonu as the leader of the Skybax Corps and all the nagging in the world would only serve to make him even more stubborn.
Seeing his hesitation Frank changed the subject.
"So this girl, Cherry. Is that her name?"
David nodded.
"She escaped from the pterandons after they captured her?"
Another nod.
Frank frowned.
"But I thought the pterandons were meant to be peaceful."
"Yeah right," a sarcastic voice behind them muttered, "they were really peaceful last year."
"Pterandons aren't evil Karl," David reminded him.
Karl snorted.
"Cherry wasn't so sure. She was pretty sure when she said their leader was evil and crazy."
"That's just one pterandon," his brother argued.
"He's their leader," Karl shot back, "with the whole flock under his control, it won't be long before the pterandons come knocking on our doors."
"The sunstones would stop them," David said confidently.
Frank flinched involuntarily at his son's comment. Karl and David noticed and stared at him strangely.
"The sunstones would stop them... right?" David asked.
Frank cleared his throat and announced he was going to bed. With that he walked off before Karl or David could protest. The two brothers stared at each other.
"What was that about?" Karl asked with an eyebrow raised.
"You don't think the sunstones are failing again?"
"Dad does know quite a bit about what goes on around in Dinotopia. I mean he does work for the Senate and all," Karl pointed out.
David shuddered remembering the sight of thousands of pterandon descending on Waterfall City.
"I'm sure they will fix the problems with the sunstones if there even is a problem," David said with a confidence he did not feel.
He didn't believe himself for a minute neither did Karl.
"Wake up, Cherry!" Zippo knocked on her door loudly.
Curled up in the soft comfortable bed, Cherry merely grunted and rolled over.
Zippo wasn't giving up.
"Cherry! You're late! School is starting soon!"
That got her awake.
"School!"
"I can't believe it," Cherry grumbled, "I'm supposed to be in this wonderful utopia and I've got to go to school. Sorry but my utopia doesn't include SCHOOL!"
"It's not that bad," Zippo told her as he walked along beside her, "Marion is the one teaching the classes."
"So what?" Cherry wanted to know, "I still have to go to school!"
Zippo smiled to himself remembering this was how Karl had reacted to the notion of going to school. He wondered if Cherry would threaten to walk out like Karl did numerous times before. He hoped not, one troublesome Outlander was enough to last him a lifetime.
"Ahhh... here it is. The Academy for Mammals," Zippo stopped and smiled brightly at Cherry, "Good. The class is just about to start. Go in! Go in! You don't want to keep them waiting."
Still muttering Cherry entered the building. Zippo smiled happily and headed back to the library. Do all Outlanders hate school? That would be an interesting thing to investigate. Zippo was oblivious to everything around him as he continued his train of thoughts. Maybe he could include it in his thesis...
The first thing Cherry noticed when she walked into the building was the relative silence of the building. The hallway was fairly dark but she could still see clearly ahead. Up ahead she could hear the low murmur of human voices.
"Cherry, you're here," Marion greeted her, "Good. We can start."
Cherry blinked in surprise as she saw the number of tiny children seated at the desks.
"This is it?" she asked not quite understanding, "I'm going to be surrounded by kids?"
Most Dinotopians would have asked her what kids meant but Marion was used to some of the Outside World lingo. She merely nodded and gestured for Cherry to take a seat.
"Don't worry. The term would past quickly," she told her attempting to comfort Cherry.
Cherry rolled her eyes and sat down pretending not to notice that all the children were staring at her.
"I would like to formally welcome you to the Academy," Marion began, "This term we will be learning about the codes of Dinotopia and also the Dinotopian lang..."
Cherry stopped paying attention soon after that and was more interested in listening to the distant rumble of the waterfalls outside.
"Cherry?"
Her head snapped up as she realised that everyone including Marion was looking straight at her. Shaking herself free from her daydreams, Cherry straightened in her seat, her patented 'I am so paying attention' look firmly in place, years of practice in high school making it seem perfectly natural.
"Yes?"
"We've just finished talking about the up-coming Springtime Festival," Marion said gently, bringing her up-to-date on what they've just been talking about, "Perhaps you would like to tell us some things about the outside world? The children are dying to find out."
Cherry glanced around the room as dozens of eager faces looked back at her expectantly.
"Oh god…"
"Disaster… a complete, complete disaster!"
Cherry sighed as she stroke Sharpbeak's beak gently.
"I swear, I don't care how many puppy dog faces I'm getting next time I'm never, ever going to explain Outland things to them again," Cherry pulled a face, "I tried to explain the oh-so simple concept of television to them and it ended well… disastrous."
'Sounds traumatic,' Sharpbeak added dryly.
Cherry glared at pterandon.
"You're mocking me," she scowled, "Thanks."
'My pleasure.'
The young auburn-haired teenager sighed before glancing around at her surroundings. The ever-present dull roar of the waterfalls outside permeated throughout the building, amplified by the high ceiling. She was sitting in Waterfall City's Skybax Corp roost, where Freefall was staying, perched on top of a straw-lined nest just several metres away. Shooting a friendly smile as David's Saurian life-partner, she turned her attention to the three of the other occupants inside the building. Trapped within wooden cages, Longwing's captured cronies glared at her, which Cherry returned with equal viciousness. She turned to Sharpbeak who was also in a cage.
"How're you holding up?"
'Fine, I guess…' Sharpbeak sighed, 'I don't like cages or being held prisoner.'Cherry shuddered as she remembered her ordeal in the World Beneath.
"Me neither," she stroke his beak again, "Don't worry, you're trial is coming up pretty soon. We'll get you out of here in no time."
'I hope.'
"I know you will," Cherry sent him a last encouraging smile before standing up, "Sorry, but I've got homework to do."
'Homework?'"Don't ask. See ya. Bye, Freefall."
The albino pterandon sent back his own goodbye as Cherry began to walk towards the door.
'Human!'She turned around and stared at the pterandon who has spoken, it was one of Longwing's cohorts.
'Longwing will win,' the pterandon snarled, 'He is strong and his army vast. Even your sunstones will be off no use.'
"Right… whatever. In case you haven't noticed Longwing is delusional."
'He will win.'
Shaking her head, Cherry pushed the door open.
'HE WILL WIN!'Calmly, Cherry walked through the doorway and shut the door close behind her. Leaning against the polished wood surface, she closed her eyes and sighed.
"I know," she whispered, "He will win."
She straightened.
"But only for a while," she said softly to herself, "Sooner or later, someone's going to find a way to stop him. He may win the next few battles but…"
She began to walk away from the roost.
"… he will never win the war."
She stepped into the busy Waterfall City streets and walked away, a sick feeling in her stomach.