Chapter 48
Behold the True King
It was a massive debate in his head whether or not he should tell her. Helen did say that he could come to her if he ever needed anything, but Orestes was by far very worried. There was no telling what would happen, and with the great horned owl barely seeing the snowy Princess nowadays, it truly made him wonder if their friendship still held up to this day. When they were younger, they always exchanged secrets, and never once had they exposed one another's secrets to anyone… Would she be willing to keep what he had planned out a secret if he told her about him finding his bat friends?
Orestes had been trying to find the right moment to sneak away from the other owls in the area, but with Zenin still keeping an eye on him, he wasn't sure how he would be able to pull it off, mainly when that barn owl reported to his father what he'd been doing so far. Brutus and so many owls here believed he was still under some kind of spell by Kassidy, and whenever he heard someone talking about that, it made him want to shout at them that it wasn't true. But, as much as the great horned owl wanted to, he had to hold his tongue as trying to convince them wouldn't make much of a difference. And unless the great horned owl had proof, none of the owls here would believe him. However, the male owl wasn't sure if Helen thought he was under some kind of spell, but if he knew anything about her, she was always open to listening.
Lately, Orestes and Helen had been catching up on what's been happening with each other, and at first, the great horned owl thought that it would only be awkward talk, but to his surprise, he was able to have a conversation with her without a problem. It felt like the good ol' days when they didn't have anything to worry about, and when it came to other owls, they really weren't interested in what he had to say and would mostly brush him off. But when the male owl spoke of any topic, the snowy Princess listened without looking bored or annoyed at all. She always kept looking interested in what he had to say, and Orestes wasn't sure if she actually did or was putting on a good act, but either way, he felt delighted that someone finally was happy enough to listen to him.
Even though he was glad to spill any topic from his beak, he didn't speak of his bat friends or the giant bats to her. As much as he wanted to, there were still some things to be considered, like Zenin eavesdropping on him. That barn owl was unbelievable when it came to hearing, and Orestes almost wanted to groan a few times whenever he saw him nearby. Somehow, though, he had to get Zenin (and possibly a few other owls even) distracted so he could finally get to Shade and the others.
Maybe, just maybe, Helen would help him with that.
General Brutus and King Boreal were speaking with a squadron leader, a Northern hawk owl, and as they were, Orestes and Helen were on a tree branch watching the conversation in silence. The squadron leader reported to them what he and his squadron found, and to the great horned owl's relief, that squadron spotted no possible sightings of the Silverwings. They only found a couple of Graywings, but they were to be executed since the skies were still closed to all bats, and that could only make the male great horned owl flinch at how violent everything was getting lately. The more the reports from the squadron leaders came, the more the son of the General got agitated for his bat friends as he hoped that they were doing alright. Them getting caught would undoubtedly be a worst-case scenario big time.
"Blasted," the King said, and he then sighed. "Good work, Tobias. You're dismissed."
The squadron leader nodded, and after he did, he took to the sky and disappeared, and as the Northern hawk owl did, Lieutenant Atlas suddenly appeared and landed in front of the King and General Brutus. "Your Majesty, General," he said, and as he did, the two owls gave him their full attention. "We have word that Romulus and Remus have captured two Silverwings and a Brightwing."
Orestes quietly gasped when those exact words came out of the Lieutenant's beak. He dreaded hearing something like that, but what made things worse was that it was two Silverwings and a Brightwing that had been captured… and he had the feeling that three of his bat friends had been the ones that were captured. He had hoped Helen didn't hear him, but to his fear, he saw the snowy Princess look at him confused, and when she did, the great horned owl tried to act like nothing was wrong, but he was sort of doing a poor job at that.
"But they want to make a deal."
"A deal?" General Brutus said, with his usual serious tone. "What sort of deal?"
"They say they'll inform us when we get there."
The General grumbled in an annoyed manner, and as he did the King looked about as annoyed as him. "Why am I not surprised?" The snowy King said. "Assemble a squadron at once. We leave immediately."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Atlas then bowed to the King, and after he did, he went to assemble the best squadron.
King Boreal then looked at his daughter. "Helen, you'll need to stay here. I will be back as soon as I can, and while I'm away, do not leave the area, you understand?"
"Father, are you sure about this?" The Princess asked. "I'm sure I could handle it, and perhaps Orestes could-"
"It'll be better this way, daughter, and Orestes will not be leaving the area either."
Of course, he wasn't allowed to leave the area, and all Orestes could do was glare at his father and even the King himself. He knew that glaring at Helen's father was a terrible idea, but with those two owls believing he was under a spell, it really did hurt him. Even though he was grateful that the Princess suggested that they could come with them, he didn't want to deal with his father. He was still giving him the silent treatment, and it was the longest he had ever gone by without speaking to him. The great horned owl could see his father was getting angry with this, and a few times, he tried to talk to him, but the young owl did not give in. His father didn't care about him anyways.
Without a word, the great horned owl flew off the tree branch and made his way to a different tree, and as he did, he felt Zenin following him. Orestes needed to follow that squadron to where Romulus and Remus lived, but how when he had a pair of barn owl eyes keeping an eye on him? He knew he wouldn't have much time, and he needed to do something fast. If he didn't, he'd be too late.
As he was flying, Helen suddenly swooped down in front of him to block his path, and when she did, Orestes yelped and quickly stopped, almost losing his flight pattern and almost hitting the Princess. "Orestes, we need to talk," she said firmly, and before the great horned owl could even say something, the snowy then looked at Zenin. "Zenin, would you mind giving us some privacy? I need to speak to my friend alone."
What the Princess said had the barn owl not looking too sure about this. "Umm, I'm not sure that would be-"
"That's an order." Helen then spoke seriously. "Unless, of course, you'd like to face my Father's wrath when he hears you didn't obey me."
Zenin was hesitant at that moment, but he then sighed after a moment of silence. "Very well, I'll leave you two be."
With that, the barn owl flew away, and when he did, Orestes felt a sudden relief that he finally left him be. However, he saw that Helen was now looking at him again and when he did, he saw her looking at him concerned. The snowy indicated for him to land on a nearby branch, and when she did, the great horned owl kindly did so, for he didn't want to upset her, and when he did, the Princess followed suit. The male great horned owl started to get very nervous at that moment as he began to feel she had her reasons as to why she wanted to talk to him.
"What's going on?" Helen then asked.
"Wh-What do you mean?" Orestes asked, trying to act stumped.
The Princess didn't seem to believe his lie, though. "Orestes, we've been friends for a very long time, and I know when something's on your mind." The great horned owl looked away, and as he did, he was amazed that she had caught onto his lie, and even though the great horned owl shouldn't have been surprised since they practically knew a lot about each other, he really was. "Tell me, what's going on? Whatever it is, you can tell me. I'm not going to judge you, and whatever it is, I'll listen."
Orestes still wasn't too sure about telling Helen the truth. However, she had always been willing to listen to him, no matter how stupid it may have sounded. But, the more he thought about it, the more he knew he couldn't keep it from her any longer. It was likely she would've found out sooner or later anyway. Besides, she had the right to know at least, and he knew this might be a risk, but it was best he got it now out rather than later.
The great horned owl sighed, and as he did, he looked directly into the snowy's stunning purple eyes. "Okay… if I tell you will you promise not to tell anyone?"
"I cross my heart and hope to die," the Princess said as she made a cross on her chest.
He felt more nervous now, but he tried to remain calm the best he could. "What I'm about to tell you is going to sound insane, but bear with me on this." With that, Orestes then started to tell Helen the full story, from his encounter with Holden, Shade, and Marina, to helping them find the towers of fire and their friend Kassidy. To his next encounter with the giant bats and the whole incident at the fire towers, and when he showed his father and Lieutenant Atlas the giant bats, he managed to get arrested. As he did, the Princess's purple eyes widened as her beak was wide open. It was no surprise her reaction would've been like that, and when he finished the story, he started to take a breather but then spoke once more. "I know this was not what you were expecting, but it's the truth. I need to find my friends and help them, but I can't do that since Zenin's watching me. Can you help me distract him? You have to believe me. I'm not under some spell, and you know I wouldn't make up anything."
Helen didn't say anything for a while, and Orestes waited patiently but was still nervous. It was like the Princess saw a ghost, and if he had been her, he would've had the same reaction as well. It was not everyday owls told a story like that anyways, and the great horned owl started to think that she wouldn't believe him… and would possibly even report him. All he could do at that moment was hold his breath.
The Princess suddenly forced her beak to close, and after she did, she hesitantly spoke. "I… I don't know what to say… But I can't let you do this…" Orestes feared this, and he started to regret telling her the truth. He was about to say something, but before he could, the snowy beat him to it. "Let me finish. I meant to say that I can't let you do this alone. Because I'm coming with you."
What Helen said made Orestes's yellow eyes widen as that answer startled him. "R-Really?"
"I knew that what your Father said sounded poppycock. However, if what you say is true, then I will take your word for it."
At that very moment, Orestes couldn't help but smile wildly. He wanted to hug her at that moment, but he refrained from doing so, for he didn't want to make it look weird. The great horned owl felt very lucky to have a friend like her, and now he had the help he needed. Now all they needed to do was follow the squadron so they could find his bat friends.
"Thanks, Helen," he said, but he then started to wonder something. "But how will we distract Zenin?"
At that question, Helen smirked. "Leave it to me."
It didn't take them long to find that barn owl, and when they did, they saw him perched on a tree branch in his thoughts, and as he was, Helen looked at Orestes and nodded to him. The great horned owl wasn't sure what she would do, but he trusted that she knew what she was doing. After all, it wasn't like she would snitch on him, right?
Helen then flew towards Zenin, and as she did, Orestes was surprised when she started to call out towards the barn owl panicked as he was hiding behind a tree. "Zenin! Zenin!"
The tyto perked his head up towards the Princess, and as he did, he immediately got concerned when he saw how frightened she looked. He then flew towards her and as he did, the two owls stopped in the air. "Your Highness, what's wrong? What happened?"
"It's Orestes! A few Silverwings are attacking him! He needs help!"
The barn owl's dark eyes widened at what Helen said. "Good gracious, where is he?"
Helen then pointed in a random direction. "He's very far in that direction! I tried to help him, but I couldn't get to him!"
"Stay put. I'll go help him." With that, Zenin then flew in the direction the snowy pointed him to, and when he was entirely out of sight, Helen looked in Orestes's direction and indicated to him to follow her.
Orestes took off without a moment to lose, and when he did, he and Helen flew together away from the area, and as they did, the great horned owl looked at the Princess, still surprised. "I can't believe you fooled him. That was amazing!"
Helen smirked at Orestes. "Thanks, I manage to pull off good acts whenever it's necessary."
The great horned owl made sure that they weren't being followed, and after he did, he looked back at the Princess. "Do you know which way the squadron went? I know they should've left by now."
The snowy nodded. "They're heading west. If we keep going in that direction, we should be able to catch up to the squadron in no time, and if anything, we might be able to find your friends if no one sees us."
"Let's try not to get caught then. The last thing I want is for anyone to see we left the area."
"We'll keep a few wingbeats behind the squadron; that way, we'll have fewer chances of being caught." She then looked ahead of her, and as she did, she spoke once more. "I can't believe we're actually doing this. It feels exhilarating, though."
At that comment, Orestes had to agree with that. Not often he did something like that either, but it just felt right. "Heh, that makes two of us."
The two owls continued on their path, and as they did, they were one step towards possibly finding the three Silverwings and the Brightwing. It would perhaps get them into trouble, but Orestes really didn't care at that moment. Instead, he felt very thankful that Helen was willing to help him, and whatever happened, he knew they'd have each other's backs.
Goth was outraged that they lost that scrawny Silverwing and banded Brightwing. They were this close to catching them, but they managed to slip through a grate out of their reach. They'd been circling the human area for a while now, seeing if they could spot either of those two bats, but there were no signs of any bat silhouettes. He knew that Martin was not going to be happy about this.
"They can't stay down there forever," Throbb said.
"When they surface, we'll see them," Goth growled.
This whole thing was starting to fuel the Prince with rage, and it shouldn't have been that hard to catch some small bats, but no. Those four small bats managed to outsmart them in so many twists and turns, and as if things couldn't have been more humiliating enough, they had a Silverwing witch to deal with. Goth wondered, though, if Martin and Dianna managed to catch Kassidy and Holden, surely they would've. After all, the red-winged Vampyrum was much more experienced in magic than that red-haired Silverwing. But the purple-winged Vampyrum had to admit that girl was pretty clever and very strong, and with her being a half Vampyrum, it really shouldn't have come to no surprise at all since Zotz created the Vampyrum to be solid and fearless bats.
As the two bats were flying, Goth made out something at the edge of the human place. He could see loads of waste the humans threw out, and the smell was horrendous. However, the more he stared at it, the Prince started to hum to himself. It was undoubtedly a good chance that the smaller bats and even their partners were in there somewhere, and if they were…
Goth then looked at Throbb. "We'll go over there and see what we can find."
With that, the brothers-in-law made their way over to the hills of garbage, and when they got there, they tried to see if they could spot anyone familiar, but they had no luck so far. As the two were searching, they managed to feed on a couple of rats to regain their energy from all that chasing they'd done, and even though Goth wished to have eaten bats instead it was better than nothing. It was better to eat what they could than cherry-pick after all.
The two giant bats were about to give up and leave this place, but suddenly their eyes spotted something… something familiar for the matter. When they got a better look at what they were seeing, the two saw Martin and Dianna near the top of a human building, but they did not have any of the smaller bats within their grasps. Goth could see that they looked furious, and when he looked at Throbb, he looked nervous about approaching them. Frankly, the Prince wasn't looking forward to approaching them either, but what other option did they have?
When Goth and Throbb landed near the married duo, Martin scowled at them as he had his arms crossed. His forehead looked swollen, and Dianna's face seemed to be covered in something strange. "You lost them, didn't you?"
The Prince scowled back in return as he looked at the snake-like bat before him. "Looks like you and your mate lost the other two bats as well. So you got magic, but yet you couldn't have caught them?"
"You watch your tongue there-"
"You know what, Martin? You've been getting on my last nerves lately, and quite frankly, I'm starting to have doubts about you and Dianna."
"Excuse you?" Dianna said icily.
"You heard me, señorita." The Prince then pointed at them. "I don't know what the deal is with you and the witch, but I know you're hiding something. I want to know why you want her, how you knew her family, and why you also want them. I demand an-"
Before the Prince could speak any further, Martin suddenly punched him across the face, and when he did, Goth crashed to the ground in pain. Throbb gasped, and almost immediately, the side of his face started to ache terribly. When the purple-winged Vampyrum touched the side of his face, he hissed, and no one had ever punched him that hard before. The giant bat tried to get up, but before he could even try to do that, the red-winged Vampyrum suddenly kicked him to the mouth, and when he did, blood-spattered out.
"Goth!" Throbb shouted.
The jungle Prince spat out blood as it was now filling inside his mouth, and after he did, he stared at Martin furiously. How dare he?! Goth knew that Martin had magic and could quickly overtake him, but he was blind with rage at that very moment, and he tried to punch the other Vampyrum, but the red-winged Vampyrum easily dodged and did an uppercut on him. The purple-winged Vampyrum crashed to the ground once more, and when he did, he groaned.
Suddenly, Martin grabbed him by the front of his beige mane, and when he did, he slammed him against the wall and kneed him to the stomach, causing the wind to knock out of the royal bat. After he did, he brought his hand near Prince's throat and bent his fingers some, and right as he did, Goth's airway immediately closed. The jungle Prince desperately tried to get air by slashing at anything, but nothing worked. His green eyes widened as he stared at the bat's heterochromia eyes, and the bat before him stared at him very hard.
"I told you I don't take any shit from anyone," Martin said dangerously. "It appears I've been too light on you, and I think I should squeeze your green eyes out of your skull." Right as he said that, he bent his fingers more, and as he did Goth gagged more. "You've seen what I can do, and I'd be very pleased to end your pathetic life here on the spot. Now, unless you don't wish for me to do that, you'll keep your mouth shut about those very questions you have. Got it?!"
Goth felt like he was already on the verge of dying, and he did not want to die in the hands of that crazy bat. But, as much as he wished he was powerful like him, there was no way he'd be able to take him on. Yes, Zotz created him to be strong, but it was clear that Martin was much more powerful than him. So, without a word, the Prince desperately nodded, and right as he did, the red-winged Vampyrum flung him at the wall, and he crashed pretty hard. The purple-winged Vampyrum's airway then opened, and when it did, he started to breathe heavily and suck in as much air as possible.
Before he could even do anything else, Martin suddenly grabbed him by his crimson red hair and slammed his face to the ground, and when he did, Goth yelled in pain. "Even though I'm giving you another chance at life, I ought to teach you some manners, you stupid Prince," Martin said with a hiss. Throbb looked like he wanted to help his brother-in-law, but this situation was way too dire, and Martin or even Dianna would surely kill him on the spot. "I'm much worse than you think I am."
Martin then raised his sharp claws, and when he did, Goth's green eyes widened. The Prince would've had no problem defending himself, but that snake-like Vampyrum easily overtook him, and now the worst was about to come to him… He had no way of getting out of this now.
It reeked in the sewers, but that was the least of Kassidy's concerns as she was still trying to find Holden. Where could he possibly be? He was bound to be down here somewhere, but there was no telling which way he went with all these tunnels. Gunk was practically everywhere, and everything was very slimy as the dirty water flowed its course. The witch felt like she was venturing through a maze, and without any other clues to go by that would help her find her friend, she would just have to guess and make the most of it.
Kassidy then came to a fork in the tunnel she was in, and when she did, she wasn't sure which way was the best option, and it was a 50% chance she'd be taking the right path. The witch let out her sound visions towards the two tunnels, and after she did, she decided to take the tunnel on the right. Before the red-haired Silverwing continued down that tunnel, she landed on the ground. The gothic Silverwinglooked to see what she had to work with as her hands were on the wall. There appeared to be nothing, though, but she still kept invisible for safety precautions. The Silverwing didn't trust her surroundings at all.
The witch then continued her flight down the tunnel, and as she did, she started to hear something. There was movement being heard on the walls and ceilings the further she got into the tunnel, and it wasn't long until she could hear squeaking. Rats. Of course, there would be rats down here, but that got Kassidy to wonder if Holden managed to get through here without getting hurt. The red-haired witch knew how aggressive rats could be, especially when it came to their territory, and she was glad she made the right choice of staying invisible. However, she hoped that none of the rats here would pick up her scent and attack her, but no possibility would happen with her being invisible.
As she was flying, she saw so many nasty rats ranging from many different ugly colors. They were scrambling around, carrying food, chatting amongst themselves, and appeared to be guarding a few areas. Kassidy did all she could to stay quiet and not hit any of the rats, and as hard as that task was, she kept her eyes and ears open for Holden and maybe even her other friends. But unfortunately, all that was present were rats and no signs of any living bats. So all the gothic Silverwing could do was keep on searching.
"Hey, did ya hear what happened?" Kassidy heard one of the rats nearby speak to another one, and when she did, she stopped in her tracks and couldn't help but curiously listen in. "A few bats apparently trespassed in the sewers, and now they're detained. I hear the Kings are going to be making a deal with the owls once they get here to collect those trespassers."
What Kassidy heard had her eyes widen. So the rats had bat trespassers? The gothic Silverwing then cursed in her head when she had the feeling that Holden got arrested by these rats… not only him Shade and Marina as well. What made matters worse, though, was that the owls were coming here, and the witch had a bad feeling that General Brutus would be among those owls for sure. She had to find her friends before it was too late, but where could they be in these sewers?
The rat the first rat spoke to then started to sniff the air, and after he did, he looked disgusted by something. "Say, do you smell that? Smells like… human."
Kassidy cursed in her head, but she made no sudden movements. The first rat looked at the second rat, annoyed, and as he did, he crossed his arms. "You imbecile, we're underneath where the humans live. You've been drinking too much booze that you can't even think properly."
The witch quietly sighed in relief, and after she did, the two rats started to argue, but Kassidy didn't want to stick around too much, for she needed to find her friends. So the gothic Silverwing continued down the path she was taking, and as she did, she passed by more rats, and there were so many of them down here. Whoever these 'Kings' were-as that rat put it-they seemed to have run their mischief interestingly as these rats had their own makeshift rafts even. Disgusting rats were, but they were pretty smart too. The witch had to admit, though, that she had never heard of anyone having more than one King, but she supposed that there was a reason that these rats had two Kings.
Suddenly, Kassidy noticed a few rats ahead of her loading some food onto a raft, and as they were, one of the rats was giving out orders. "Hurry up! King Remus expects the food to be delivered immediately!"
The rats loading the measliest of foods to the heaviest onto the big-looking raft were hustling and bustling, and as they were, the witch landed nearby to watch the commotion. As she watched, she quietly hummed to herself as she thought. Perhaps she could follow that raft to where her friends might be by now, and she wasn't sure how long she would need to follow that raft for, but this seemed like an excellent chance to find Holden, Shade, and Marina. Besides, if she kept going down random tunnels, there was no way she'd be able to find them in time.
A few minutes later, the raft was loaded, and when it was, the rat giving out orders spoke once more. "Onwards, and let her rip!"
On either side of the raft, Rats started to swim and steer it down the tunnel. As they were, they seemed to be in a hurry to get all this food to this supposed King named Remus. Either way, Kassidy didn't want to lose them, so she quickly took off and followed the raft down the tunnel to its destination, making sure not to make a sound. As she was, the gothic Silverwing hoped that her friends were alright and that nothing terrible happened to them.
They were thrown into a jail cell, which had to have been the second time now they got into a situation like this. A while ago, they were being chased by Goth and Throbb, but they managed to get away. However, to their bad luck, they got captured by the rats. So now the owls, along with General Brutus, were on their way to get them. Shade knew that Brutus wasn't going to go easy on them, and he and Marina tried all they could to get the cell door open, but they could not prevail. The two bats were worried about what Remus would do with their friend, but they hoped that Holden would be alright.
Shade was surprised that Holden just so happened to get himself captured by the rats as well, but that made the sky-blue Silverwing wonder where Kassidy was. Was she alright? Did she manage to escape Martin and Dianna? He wanted to ask those questions to their purple Silverwing friend and some other ones as well, but with Remus wanting the human turned bat to stay, he could not do so.
Romulus was keeping an eye on them… or at least he was. Only about five minutes in, the giant rat dozed off in front of them against the wall, and he was snoring pretty loudly. It would've been a good time for the two friends to sneak off, but without a way to unlock the cell door, they were stuck. Shade did not want to stay here and have the owls take them away.
"We've got to get out of here and find Holden and Kass before Brutus shows up and finishes us on the spot," Shade whispered.
"Shade, there's dozens of rats in this area," Marina whispered back, "and who knows where our other friends could be by now."
"Well, we have to try something, but what could we do?"
The Brightwing hummed to herself, and as she did, she started to look at the sleeping King. Shade wondered what she was thinking, and before he could even ask that question, the pale blonde Brightwing jumped forward, close enough to the cell door, and gripped at it. "Psst, Romulus."
Shade's green eyes widened when he saw his friend trying to get Romulus's attention. Was she insane? What was she trying to do? The rat seemed to have not heard the banded Brightwing, though, and he continued to sleep peacefully.
"Romulus," Marina said, louder that time, and when she did, Romulus snorted awake, looking pretty exhausted and confused. Shade got closer to his friend as he did, the Brightwing continued speaking. "You don't seem too happy about becoming leader of the beasts." When the rat finally saw who was talking to him, he was startled, as the banded Brightwing then smiled. "But, if you let us go, you won't have to worry about it."
When Shade finally realized what his friend was doing, he smiled at her. She was trying to convince Romulus to let them out. The sky-blue Silverwing noticed that the giant rat seemed hesitant about Remus's decision, and he felt like Marina's plan would work. It just had to.
"Let you go?" Romulus said, and when he did, he instantly got distraught. "Oh, no… my brother would have a fit."
Marina furrowed her brow confused. "Why do you care so much about what he says? I thought you both shared the job of King?"
The giant rat looked around him as if to expect someone might attack him, but after a bit of looking around, he looked back at the Brightwing. "Technically, since I was born first, Remus isn't really the King." He then placed his hand on his chest. "I am."
The two friends gasped. Romulus was supposed to be the King full time? But why wasn't he? Why was his brother sharing the throne with him? This whole thing did not make sense to Shade at all, and as he looked to Marina, she looked about as confused as him.
"I see you're confused." Romulus then got up and got closer to their cell. "You see, the rumor is, I'm insane… a freak." He lifted his arms, ashamed, and when he did, the two friends gasped once more.
Between the rat's arms and legs were membranes, and they were enormous.
"Wings," Shade breathed, amazed with a smile. "I wish my wings were that big."
"Huh?" Romulus said, surprised by Shade's comment.
"We don't see anything wrong with what you have."
"Yeah, and besides," Marina then said, "if you're the rightful King, why do you even listen to Remus?"
Romulus looked down sadly, and as he did, Shade and Marina looked at him, concerned. "Remus was the one to spread that rumor of me… To him, I'm scarcely a rat at all, and he said freaks like me can't rule by themselves. That's why he's helping me to do my job."
What Romulus said immediately made Shade feel bad for him. Remus did not treat him like a brother and could only look at him as a freak… How sad. The sky-blue Silverwing knew what it was like to be treated differently, and the rat before them seemed to have gone through a lot of emotional abuse. The two friends looked at each other, and after they did, they looked back at the purple rat, feeling really sorry for him.
The King's sad expression suddenly washed away, and as it did, he looked at the two friends seriously, but it was clear he still felt despondent. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to guard you until Brutus gets here."
Romulus then started to walk away back to his spot, and as he did, Shade kept looking at him sadly. However, as the King was going back to his place, the sky-blue Silverwing wanted to try and convince him once more to let them out. After what Remus put him through, the blonde Silverwing wanted to try and make friends with the rat in front of them. He had no right to be treated that way and deserved to be King, no matter how he looked at all.
"Wait," Shade said, and when he did, Romulus looked at him confused. "Look, you shouldn't have to listen to him. I mean, what's looking different got to do with being a good King?" As he spoke, the rat listened to him more closely as he walked back over to the cell door. "We're all different in some way. Look at me." He then lifted his wings. "I'm a runt."
"I've got a band," Marina said, lifting her banded arm. "And our friends are humans turned bats, with one of them being a witch, and if that isn't different, then I don't know what is."
"See? There's nothing wrong with being different. The only one that shouldn't be ruling is Remus. Look at what he's doing, look at what he's doing to you, which I consider selfish. But you're not selfish, Romulus." Shade then smiled. "You're one of a kind with a big heart, and that is something Remus will never have or take away from you."
After what Shade said, Romulus's eyes glistened, and a single tear slipped from one of his green eyes. He then started to rub his eyes, and after he did, he smiled weakly at Shade. "No one has ever said that to me before. Thank you, Shade Silverwing." He then looked at Marina. "And thank you too. I will never forget this, and I am now indebted to you. It is time that I stand up for what is right." He then slammed his fist onto his hand, and after he did, he did something that surprised the two bats.
Romulus opened the cell door, and as soon as he did, the two bats flew out of it, and they smiled at the rat gratefully. "Thanks, Romulus," Shade said. "We'll never forget this either." However, the sky-blue Silverwing then started to get worried. "We have to find our other friends."
"But how?" Marina asked. "We don't even know where to look."
"I'm not sure where your witch friend would be," Romulus said as he rubbed his chin. "However, I do believe I know where Remus has your other friend at." Suddenly, the rat King put the two friends in a headlock, and after he did, the Silverwing and Brightwing yelped, surprised. "Sorry, you two. I can't let any of the rats report to my brother that I let you out, so act like I'm dragging you somewhere."
The two friends looked at each other, and when they did, they smiled when they both realized that they had gained another ally. He was now going to help them, and what he was doing was pretty clever. Wherever Holden was, they hoped to reach him soon enough.
A while ago, the rats holding him down brought him to a different area, and it appeared to be some dining area. They had him sit down on a thimble used as a chair at a big-looking plate used as a table, and when they did, they stood either side of Holden, watching him very closely. The purple Silverwing felt rather uncomfortable as those two rats were staring at him, and he wasn't sure what was going on, but he sure as hell hoped that King Remus wasn't planning on eating him. But, of course, that rat wasn't even here, and the human turned bat wasn't sure where he was but every minute that passed made his hands feel sort of sweaty.
Then, Remus suddenly appeared at the doorway, and when he did, he was fixing up his bottle cap crown and dusting himself, and after the King did, he walked right into the room. "Good, right where he should be," he said to the two guards as he walked over to the other end of the table to take his seat.
"Right where I should be?" Holden asked a little nervously. "So you can eat me?"
"Eat you?" Remus then started to cackle. "No, no, far from it." He then sat down in his seat.
The purple bat looked at him confused, and as he did, he tilted his head. "Then why am I in here?"
"You will find out soon enough, but first…" He then clapped his hands a couple of times. "Bring out the food!"
Right on cue, servants started to bring out loads of food from healthy to unhealthy, and as they did, Holden looked more confused than ever. What was happening? The rat servants then laid out the food, and as they did, the purple Silverwing looked at it all disgusted as flies were starting to buzz around it. His stomach began to twist and turn, and the human turned bat did everything he could not to gag. Remus couldn't be serious, could he?
When the food was all brought out, King Remus looked satisfied as he rubbed his hands together. "Help yourself to anything you'd like. Enjoy yourself!"
The King then started to grab so much food, and when he did, he chowed down on them. Holden felt like he was this close to throwing up. The King was chewing with his mouth opened and slobbering all over the place. Whenever Holden ate at home with his dad and brother, they usually ate without making a mess, but Remus was such a pig that he couldn't even clean up. Could this guy get any grosser? Apparently, he could as he belched loudly and continued to eat.
Holden had no appetite and did not want to eat any of this garbage, but when he noticed the rats guards glaring at him, it was as if they were telling him to eat. The purple Silverwing smiled at them nervously, and after he did, he looked at the food in front of him and tried to pick out something less disgusting to chew on, but barely anything looked good. His brown eyes then landed on a granny smith apple that was a little eaten, and when they did, the young bat hesitantly reached out for it and pulled it out. After the Silverwing did, he took a small bite out of it, but he was greeted with an awful taste right as he did. Yes, granny smith apples were supposed to be sour, but that was not what the human turned bat had a problem with… it tasted so rotten.
When Holden looked inside the apple, it had a brown color, and his eyes widened. He immediately spat it out and started to cough, and as he was, he used his hands to wipe at his tongue. Oh, how he wished he had some water to wash out that awful taste in his mouth. Hell, the human-turned-bat wouldn't even mind some mouth wash.
The rat guards could only look at him, annoyed, and as they did, Remus looked at him confused but a little annoyed as well. "Something wrong?"
As Holden was doing what he was doing, he looked at the King, frustrated. "What do you think?"
"I think I know what's wrong. You'd prefer dessert. Allow me to have the servants get that-"
"No! No, no, no, I'm not hungry!" Holden immediately had the feeling Remus didn't bring him in here so he could have some food. Instead, he had the feeling there was more to this. "What do you want? I know you're not giving me this food for nothing."
Remus looked more annoyed than ever, but he forcefully plastered a smile on his ugly mug even as that was. "Alright, I'll cut to the chase." He then looked at the purple bat seriously. "I know that you're a human."
Holden cussed in his head as he had the feeling that rat would've known something like this. "I don't know what you're-"
"You and I both know that you're a human, and so is that witch. Now, I'd like to know how did she do it? How did she turn you and herself into bats?"
The purple Silverwing continued to try and be clueless, but he felt like his acting wasn't working. "You've got the wrong idea here, Remus. I ain't-"
"Start spilling your guts, or your little bat friends will get something much worse than imprisonment!"
At that moment, Holden's brown eyes widened as he could see that rat was not joking around. Instead, he was fuming with anger, and the purple Silverwing cursed in his head as he had no choice but, to tell the truth. As much as he didn't want to, the last thing he wanted was harm to come to Shade and Marina. However, he figured he could do a little lying to convince the King.
"Magic, obviously. I don't exactly remember how she did it, but all I can say is she has this spell that can help her transform into any animal."
After what Holden said, Remus hummed to himself in thought. After a bit of thinking, he then nodded and looked back at the purple Silverwing. "Well, then, how about we make a deal?"
Holden looked at him, confused. "A deal?"
"Yes, ruling over the humans is a huge opportunity, and if you help me take over, I'll give you whatever you want. That would require the witch in that plan, too, though. But, even though you've been quite a sarcastic piece of garbage towards me, I'm still willing to offer you this deal. So what do you say?" Remus then smiled an ugly smile. "Do we have a deal?"
This rat was unbelievable. First, he wanted to rule the beasts, but now he wants to rule over the humans? How much more could Remus possibly want? It was clear, though, he was hungry for power.
Holden smiled fakely towards the purple rat, and he acted like he was going to say yes, but he then changed his facial expression to annoyance. "No."
At Holden's answer, Remus's smile tightened. "What did you say?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. What I said was…" Holden then cleared his throat, and after he did, he cupped his mouth. "No!"
Slowly, Remus's smile faded away, and as it did, he clenched his dirty hands into fists. He stared at Holden furiously, and it looked like at any moment he was going to explode. "You're making a big mistake here! You're going to regret you never took me up on that offer!" He then looked at the two guards near Holden. "Guards!"
Kassidy followed the raft for a while, and when it finally stopped, she followed the rats carrying the food from there. She could not believe what she was seeing, and it felt like she was flying through an underground town… only it was all pretty disgusting to look at. The witch followed the rats to what appeared to be a dining room, and when she got in there, the red-haired witch was surprised when she saw Holden in there, and he was talking to King Remus. She'd been watching the conversation roll out, and she honestly despised that rat. How could he even call himself a King for the matter? The gothic Silverwing wanted to help her friend out, but she first wanted to see what this conversation was about, and it now appeared to be over as the guards suddenly forced Holden to stand up.
Remus started to approach Holden and the rat guards, and as he did, the blue Silverwing saw that the rat's claws were extended, and she immediately knew what he was going to do to Holden. Acting quickly, Kassidy then flew hard at the rat King, and when she did, she used her feet to shove them into his ugly face. And when the Silverwing did that, she used them to push him, and he ended up crashing to the ground. The two rat guards and the purple Silverwing's eyes widened when that happened, and since no one saw the red-haired witch, she had an advantage. The blue Silverwing then punched one of the rat guards to the stomach, and after she did, the gothic Silverwing grabbed him by the arm and swung him towards the wall. The rat hit face-first to the wall, and when he did, he was knocked out unconscious.
The other rat guard was shocked by what happened to his buddy, and before he could even do anything, Kassidy used her telekinesis spell on him and sent him hurtling towards the table. The guard crashed onto it, the table shattered, and food was sent flying all over the place. It wasn't long until that guard went out like a light as well. The witch thanked her invisibility spell in her head for making this easy.
Holden stood there stunned with his jaw hanging open, and as he did, Kassidy went to get his attention. "Psst, Holden." The purple Silverwing shook his head, and when he did, he looked around him confused. "Over here."
The purple Silverwing looked over to where Kassidy was invisible, and when he did, he opened his mouth but then closed it. When he opened his mouth the second time, though, he managed to speak. "Kass? Is that you?"
"Yeah, it's me."
"A-Are you invisible?" Kassidy didn't need to answer his question as he looked even more stunned now. "Holy crap!" He then smiled, amazed. "You're actually invisible!"
Suddenly, the two heard Remus groaning, and when they did, they saw him getting up. Holden looked back at Kassidy, and when he did, he indicated for her to wait right there, and the human turned bat then started to approach that rat leaving the witch looking at him confused. When the King looked at what happened to the two rat guards, he was shocked, but when he saw Holden, he blinked his eyes a few times but furrowed his brow. All the purple Silverwing did, though, was look at him casually as he crossed his arms.
Remus started to tower over Holden as his hands clenched into fists. "Alright, you… Now you've-"
"Whoa, whoa, Remus," Holden then pointed at something. "What's that?"
"Huh?" The King then looked to where the human-turned bat was pointing to.
With Remus distracted, Holden suddenly punched him across the face, and when he did, the King's bottle cap crown came flying off, and he blacked out when he hit the ground. Kassidy's blue eyes widened at what her friend did, but she had to admit that what he did was pretty slick and funny. That King was so stupid to fall for the purple Silverwing's lie.
"Alright, Remus!" A familiar masculine voice suddenly shouted, and Kassidy and Holden looked over to see Shade flying in the room. "Your time of ruling the rats has come to…" The sky-blue Silverwing trailed off when he saw how the place looked and when he did, he looked shocked.
"Shade, what's wrong?" The familiar voice of Marina's asked when she flew in, and when she saw what happened in the room, she looked about as shocked as Shade.
"Shade, Marina," Holden said, clearly surprised to see them.
When Shade and Marina saw their friend, they immediately flew over to him and landed. "Holden," Shade said, but he then pointed to the unconscious rats and the mess that was made. "did you…?"
"Not really. Kass did most of the work."
At the mention of Kassidy, the small Silverwing and banded Brightwing's eyes widened. "Kass?" Marina said. She then looked around her, confused. "Where is she?"
"I'm right here," Kassidy said, and when she did, Shade and Marina gasped when they heard her voice but couldn't see her. Then, the male Silverwings and female Brightwing looked over to where they heard their friend's voice, and when they did, the female Silverwing spoke once more. "I'm invisible."
"Great Nocturna," Shade said, amazed, and after he did, he went to try and touch her. "Am I able to touch you?"
"Let's try and keep our hands to ourselves, Shade."
The small Silverwing pulled his hand back, and as he did, Marina spoke. "Kass, I can't believe you're invisible. What's it like?"
"It feels bizarre mostly, but it did give me the advantage to sneak around the sewers. Now that we managed to group back up, I say we get the hell out of here."
Suddenly, they heard groaning, and they all turned to see Remus waking up. Kassidy couldn't believe that rat was managing to become conscious pretty fast two times now. When he looked up, he started to growl at Holden, but when the King saw Shade and Marina, he looked shocked to see them, but he went back to growling. Suddenly he started to charge at them and as he did he yelled in anger. However, before he could even do anything, a rat silhouette suddenly got in between the angry rat and the bat friends, and when it did, it slammed a broken piece of the plate used as a table onto the smaller rat's head. Right as that happened, King Remus spun around dizzily and then once more passed out.
Kassidy did not see that coming at all, and when she got a better look at the rat that knocked out Remus, she saw him wearing the same bottle cap crown as the smaller rat. She immediately realized that must've been the other King… but why did he do what he did? Either way, he knocked out King Remus pretty well.
"Romulus," Shade said, surprised, but he then looked at the rat with a smile, "that was awesome!"
"Hang on, hang on," Holden said, confused. "What just happened there?" He then pointed at the rat named Romulus. "And why is he here?"
"It's okay," Marina said. "He's here to help us."
The purple Silverwing blinked his eyes a few times in shock. "Him?"
"Yeah, he let us out of our cell and helped us find you. We'll explain more when we get to a safer place, but as Kass said, we should get out of here."
Holden looked a little unconvinced that Romulus helped them. Kassidy couldn't say she blamed him. After all, these rats captured him, Shade, and Marina, but perhaps this rat really was willing to help them. He didn't seem all that bad after all.
"How are we supposed to get out of here when there are rats guarding every inch of this place?" Holden said.
Romulus cleared his throat, and when he did, the four friends looked at him. "If I may, I know just the place you can all get out at. It'll be a bit of a long trip to get there, but it'll be a better exit route than all the other ones in these sewers. I recommend that your friend stays invisible for now until we're out of sight from all the other rats. I'll do the same thing I did with you two, but this time with also him." He then pointed at Holden, and when he did, the purple Silverwing immediately got confused.
"Uhh… what exactly will you be doing?"
"You've ever been in a headlock before?"
When Romulus asked that question, Kassidy almost chuckled when she saw Holden's brown eyes widen. She thought of making him invisible too so he wouldn't have to be dragged through the rats' territory in a headlock, but she didn't want to waste time trying to do that, and she didn't want to lose sight of the purple Silverwing when she wanted to make him reappear again. It was probably better that way anyway.
"This should be interesting," Kassidy said with a bit of a smirk that no one would've been able to see.
All Holden could say at that moment was the f word.
A/N- So exhausted after working on the next chapter, but I hope that you enjoyed it ^^;