Chapter 5
Mission on the horizon
Disclaimer
I do not own Rio.
This was probably the most eventful day of Blu's life. At first, he forgot a promise he made to his friends and later on got busted by those exact same birds, exposing a carefully guarded secret of several years. A friendship since childhood was almost ruined, and now the very same friends were helping him out, even though they knew they would get in just as much trouble by doing so. Although he wouldn't admit it, having people to share the burden of a secret of this caliber was liberating. He never thought they would listen and forgive him, since they had every reason to simply leave him there and report what he was doing. It just affirmed what great friends he had, and how much of an idiot he was for almost losing them.
"Alright. That should be the final piece." Blu announced with pride, picking up the weapon once more to inspect it. The general appearance didn't change, but small fins were placed near the spikes. Turns out they act as perfect heat sinks, allowing the weapon to be turned on for longer than previously possible.
"Let's see it work then." Lucas commented impatiently and Blu didn't waste much time granting him his request. He moved back a bit to get space between them, being careful to not get caught up on the wires still dangling along. He switched on the weapon and just as last time an arc quickly formed and stabilized. The faint glow it gave off made it a truly mesmerising appearance, even though it was meant to be an instrument of death. One thing Lucas and Diana realized was that the arc was much thinner, with less spreading than before.
"I changed a few of the capacitors and resistors, making the arc tighter. Now there is absolutely no chance for the arc to hit the wielder." He explained what he done, once again showing them that he did consider their concerns and warnings.
"That's comforting to know… So, what's next on the line?" Diana nodded approvingly, turning back towards the table and the blueprint, trying to guess the next move. Lucas was still busy taking in the sight, but got back to his senses as Blu turned it off.
''Well, I'm not really sure. The electronics are working as intended, and I see Lucas finished the proper stick itself, so there is not much more I wanted to add… I guess we can transfer over the sensitive stuff and give it a proper test." He admitted, scratching his chin with a talon after placing down the prototype with all the electronics on it.
Lucas picked up his own handy work, which was actually mostly Blu's design. Although the blue macaw would never admit it, having three people work on it instead of one really did speed up the process. While Blu was skilled with electronics, metal work was not really his strong suit, and it would have taken him days to finish what his friend accomplished within a few hours.
After Lucas handed over the finished frame to Blu, the expert got right back to work on assembling it all together. He started by removing the finished electronics from the prototype frame, careful not to break anything as he did so. Diana assisted him throughout the process, giving an extra helping talon whenever needed. This granted the other blue macaw with a bit of free time as he patiently waited for the thing to be assembled.
After another hour of tedious work and testing, the three macaws were relieved to know that Blu's 'little' home project was finally completed. Blu picked it up and immediately started doing a few goofy tricks with it, getting a feel for the weapon in his talons. It was relatively light for the size, which was a good thing when it came to combat. He swung it around a few times before smashing it against the hollow's wall with force for good measure. To his delight, it didn't even crack and the electronics worked as if nothing happened.
"I think we can agree this is a finished product." He exclaimed, proud by their accomplishment. He turned it off and placed it back on the table. "That leaves us with one last task… we need a name for it." He added shortly after, looking towards his friends for possible suggestions since he was terrible at naming things.
"Thunderstruck." Lucas commented, but revoked it a few seconds later.
"Blitzkrieg. The German origin term for a swift, focused blow to an enemy." Diana suggested, and the two males looked at each other stunned. She thought she said something wrong and asked them what was the problem.
"Nothing. It is fitting! Blitzkrieg it is!" Blu exclaimed loudly once again, picking up the newly named weapon and raising it in the air. Once his impromptu declaration was done, he walked over to the hollow's wall and placed it on two hooks, mounting it on a neat place. Lucas and Diana's eyes widened a bit, only now realizing it was there and how perfect it was to place the weapon. Blu got back to them and began to silently tidy up his workplace, starting by throwing away trash and unusable junk. The two macaws assisted him without a word and they worked with a strangely comfortable silence.
"We're going to have to see my dad today about this, you two know that, right?" Blu spoke up when they were near the end of their cleanup, earning two firm nods from his friends in response. "I really appreciate the help, so I will make sure to direct all the possible flak on myself." He reassured them, making sure to get rid of any doubts that might have taken root within their minds.
"I'm sure it won't be that bad once you tell them what you told us." Lucas offered as comfort, but regretted it a moment later when he realized it was nice and all but they might not get that far. Neither macaw could offer a response, so they all opted for peace and quiet as they finished the cleanup by hiding away the final set of tools. Blu sighed heavily, clearing his mind of distractions. He looked up at his friends and put up a small smile.
"Let's go. I'll lead the way." The three parrots left Blu's hollow, leaping off the branch and flying towards the center of the Spix's macaw tribe. Blu took point as they flew in a standard V formation, responding to random blue macaws who greeted the leader's son while in flight. By now Blu was used to it and didn't even pay attention, unconsciously responding to phrases he heard at least a million times by now.
As he lead the formation towards a central building which just came into view, his mind raced with dozens of thoughts, speeches and scenarios. He was not as close to his father as he would have liked, which meant he couldn't fully predict just how he will react to the news. While Blu was thinking, Diana glanced ahead, inspecting the human construct they were heading towards.
The base was a huge rectangular building with a rather tall tower emerging from it's west side. Unlike most structures in the vicinity, this was not littered with macaws with the exception of guards on the perimeter and rooftops. Diana and Lucas were uneasy at first to come near it, because unlike Blu they were civilians and the law to stay away applied to them as well. Thankfully Blu had the privilege to allow people inside the most public spaces.
"Good afternoon Mr. Gunderson. You sure just made my job a lot easier." A female blue macaw greeted the trio as they landed on the building's edge. The yellow bandage on her wing gave away her role within the tribe, being the sole marker of an enforcer, a primitive form of a police structure. Blu on the other hand was puzzled by the strange statement and voiced that confusion.
"Hello… Um, I'm afraid I don't follow. How did I make your job easy exactly?" For a moment he began to panic, his mind wondering off. What if someone found out and reported me?.. Could it be that they tricked me? No! They wouldn't do that. He made sure to shake these thought away before it showed and the enforcer became suspicious. Thankfully the reason was something completely different.
"Your father requested that you come for today's meeting. The reason was not stated, our order was just to notify and bring you in." She explained her order, clearing up some of the confusion but it just raised even more questions within the trio.
"I see. This is convenient then, because I actually wanted to speak to him too… Is it a problem if my friends come along as well? They will be needed." Blu understood the woman can't possibly know more and decided to just go with the flow for now.
"I can't promise anything, that decision is not up to me I'm afraid. But if they truly are friends of yours, I won't make a fuss about letting them in the building." She stood to the side with a warm smile, extending a wing for a 'please proceed' gesture. The three macaws returned the smile and thanked her before walking inside the now unobstructed entrance.
Meanwhile, Lucas had other plans and once his friends walked inside he silently stayed behind and waited until the macaws were out of earshot. The bird propped his body by placing his right wing on the entrance's frame, altering his voice slightly to be as seductive as possible he glanced towards the confused enforcer. "So… Miss. Officer. I'd like to thank your service. Perhaps we could catch a mango after your shift is over?" It dawned on the woman what he wanted and desperately tried to hide her amusement at the obviously bad pickup attempt, but she had to admit the kid had guts.
She was spared of the process of declining the invite when a pair of wings grabbed the charmer from the entrance. "WHOA!" Lucas yelled in a panic as he was dragged away against his will, frantically moving his wings in random directions, hoping to escape without any luck.
"You are such a tusk. We have work to do!" Diana scolded him as she caught up to Blu with ease, the helpless macaw still being dragged behind her. She might be a female but her strength was nothing to underestimate when angry. Blu was grinning like an idiot, while the whole show was too much for the officer and she finally laughed. The commotion successfully gathered a small crowd of curious birds who all followed the enforcer's example, adding to Lucas's shame and smashed ego.
Once that was over and Lucas was finally allowed to stand up and walk with them, they took the chance to look around the building. The inside was not that different from the outside all in all. The vines and plants overgrown the interior heavily, but the places where birds were often around or something important was located was kept in order and clean from any vegetation. At least in the eyes of macaws; For a human, this place would have looked like a run down place.
From seemingly nowhere, a very muscular and tall blue macaw appeared from behind one of the corners, stopping the trio in their tracks the moment they realized the bird was walking towards them. The bird in question towered over them easily, his face rocking a long scar across his left side and beak. The deep voice and gray piercing eyes didn't really add a lot of comfort until they understood what he wanted.
"Good day Mr. Gunderson junior. I'm Mark Lopes. Your father personally ordered me to accompany you as you wait for the current meeting to be over." He introduced himself and smiled, waiting for their tense shoulders to relax. While some birds would have seen it as offensive, he knew his size caused a lot of people to be wary of him and learned to not hold it against them.
"He also told me to get two more people but before that I would like to ask you, who are the two youngsters?" Just like the enforcer before him, he questioned the two figures identity behind Blu. A bit irritated by the constant need to explain himself, he elaborated who they were and concentrated very hard to not show his emotion, and that was only partially because he didn't want to anger a macaw who could probably crush him with minimal effort.
"Well ain't this my lucky day. Exactly the two people I need!" Mark happily exclaimed, earning a questioning look from the trio. It looks like they make every birds day easy for some reason. They could understand why the tribe leader would request the presence of his son, but two of his friends as well? Especially when neither they or their parents held any considerable power within the tribe.
"Huh… The lady at the entrance also said the same thing. Although with her, it was just my presence." Blu spoke his thoughts out loud with a questioning tone, his mind already working overtime to figure out the puzzle before him. The older macaw chuckled at the statement, as if he was expecting it. He held out his wings to the side, inviting the young adults to follow him as he explained.
"Miss Simas and Mr Ramos was requested a few minutes later after one of our advisors spoke to Mr. Gunderson. While I guess your curiosity must be dying to know the reason, it was never stated I'm afraid." Obviously it was not Blu's first time inside the building, but for the sake of his friends, he asked Mark if he could show them around the busy establishment. Since they had some time to kill, the masculine macaw happily agreed, showing off everything interesting as they made their way towards their end goal.
During their impromptu tour, Lucas recognized many public figures, higher ups and even celebrities as they walked by minding their own business. He just realized how both Diana and he were lucky to be a friend of Blu, as most blue macaws couldn't just get inside here. Of course fame and connections were not the reason for their friendship, far from it, but he would be stupid to not admit the benefits they provided.
"That corridor leads towards the main congress hall and the leader's private room." Mark was in the middle of showing the rooms with a wingtip when one of the dog doors opened up, revealing more and more blue macaws as they seemed to pour out of the entrance. Looks like the meeting just finished. Right on time. The older macaw thought to himself as he saw a very familiar bird enter the hall.
The three best friends kept their eyes on the flood of macaws and the bird in question caught their interest too. It was non other than Blu's father, the current leader of the Spix's macaw tribe. Mark stayed silent next to the three youngsters and made eye contact with the other fully grown adult. Casper seemed to be angry, his eyes radiating irritation and anger, but it dissipated when he noticed the group in the end of the corridor. His anger seemed to dissipate immediately and smiled, changing his direction to meet up with them. He was a well built macaw for his age, with the same navy blue hue as his son, but his eyes were light blue and had a very dark gray beak for Spix's standards.
"Hello father." Blu greeted his dad once he got within earshot, followed by a unison greeting from both Diana and Lucas. Mark already met him today and just stayed silent, curious about his next assignment the leader will no doubt give him now that his son and his friends were delivered to him as requested.
The macaw smiled at the politeness, coming forward to give his son a strong hug, which he reciprocated. They soon broke the embrace and the older male return the greetings in kind. "Hello kids." He teased them, knowing full well they hated being called kids as all three of them were considered adults by this point. Still, habits die hard for grown ups and they knew it, so it was all good faith banter.
"Thanks for bringing them here Mark." He thanked the macaw who just nodded, his expression remaining neutral and stoic.
Once the greetings and pleasantries were done with, Casper collected himself and straightened out his posture. He had a job to do and right now and acknowledged that it was time to treat the young macaws as fellow comrades instead of family or friends. "I'm pleased to see all three of you here so early, my men must have done their job spectacularly."
"… Actually, we came here all on our own. We met up with the woman who was supposed to be sent after me at the entrance. There is something I wanted to speak to you about." Blu clarified the reason they actually came here, and observed his father's reaction in detail. The older macaw was surprised but quickly recovered and hid his emotion, replacing it with an understanding nod.
"I see. You can tell me all about it in a bit, but right now the important part is why I called you three here. As a young engineer and the only expert in our family, I want your input for the following meeting. It is about the electrical system… Complications rose a few days ago." Casper gave away a bit of the meeting's topic, but his tone of voice was anything but positive. The situation got serious in an instant, the three young macaws now curious beyond belief what these complications could be. On top of that, Diana and Lucas still didn't know why they were needed but figured it will be told in due time.
"Complications, sir?" Diana spoke up, making sure to repeat what she though she heard to clear up any possible confusion. Blu's father nodded, confirming that she indeed heard it right. She didn't like his tone one bit, since it was very rare to see this side of the tribe leader. It was reserved for truly important situations involving possibly lives or even the tribe's future.
"Yes. I will go in detail once the council arrives… Until that, how about you tell me what you wanted to talk about?" He shifted the topic back towards the group but Blu became uncomfortable with all the recent development. He too felt the negative vibe his father gave off, and knowing just how sensitive his own topic was, he didn't want to bring it up right now. There was no telling how he would react to it; Plus, he wanted his father to be fully there when this meeting begins, since Blu's curious nature was acting up again and he needed to know just what was going on.
"Uh… Never mind that, it can wait until later. It is nowhere near as important as this meeting from what you just described." He dismissed it as causally as possible, trying to mask the worry from his face as best he could. His father saw through it and kept staring in his son's chocolate brown eyes, but for some reason decided not to press it further.
"Okay then." This surprised the group but they were relieved in the same time. Turns out it was indeed the best decision, because a few moments later a new group arrived, revealing several blue macaws of different ages, but all were no younger than Blu's father. They ranged from mid age all the way to elder, with varying plumage color and an equal mix of both genders. Blu and his friends quickly recognized at least some of them as figureheads, people in position of high power. This must be the whole council. Whoa, I never thought there were so many. Lucas thought to himself.
As if on cue, Casper motioned all of them to follow him and headed back towards the congress hall's entrance. The trio accompanied by Mark and the council followed him in silence, while the three young adults tried their best to not make direct eye contact with any of them, because even though they were looking forward, they could sense the probing gazes the elders shot towards them.
"Here we are." Mark spoke up quietly as they walked through the dog door. The room had no windows, but the light switch still worked and was in the on position since the room was illuminated. The trio could see a couple of human chairs neatly arranged by a big circular table in the very center of the room. The struggle it must have took to arrange them that way was not a small feat for sure.
They watched the dozens or so macaws walk inside the room and take their seats. The speed at which they sat down at their respected place told them this was not the council's first time coming to a meeting like this, which made Lucas a bit uncomfortable. He never thought he would win a match at morning and somehow end up in an inner tribe council meeting by afternoon with Blu and Diana, yet here they were.
Diana lightly punched his shoulder, redirecting his attention to the female in response. He shot her a small glare flavored with a questioning look. The light blue woman just rolled her eyes in frustration before pointing towards four empty spots near the end of the table, and Lucas realized what she was getting at.
"Oh." He quietly exclaimed with a sheepish smile, following her and Blu who got the memo and was already half way between the 'seats' and him. He reached the area and sat down on the table right between Diana and Blu. Fortunately for him, he was not the slowest, meaning the meeting was not delayed due to him zoning out. Once the final bird settled down, the Spix's macaw leader spoke up, his voice cutting through the ambient noise.
"Ladies and gentlemen, lets skip the pleasantries this session. I will not sugarcoat our situation, we are in serious trouble." His voice cut through the silence like hot knife through butter. Once he let his audience realize the situation, he continued before anyone could cut him off, not that they would do it. "What I am about to reveal is a high ranked secret, therefor it must never leave this room. Three weeks ago we received an increase of irregular reports from the power plant. According to our head mechanic Silvio Santos… the main generator which supplies the tribe is failing."
A dropped pinhead would be deafening in the silence which followed the blue macaw, the occupants not daring to take a breath as they processed what the leader just said. It was no secret that a big reason they were able to keep away intruders were the electrical fences and lamps scattered around the broken down human base, giving the Spix's macaws an enormous advantage when it comes to border control and law enforcement. Just in this year alone, five intruders were caught thanks to the illumination, allowing the tribe to keep their secrets hidden.
"Silvio said that within two months time, multiple parts will break down beyond our ability to repair, leaving us without any electricity… This is why I called upon my son to this meeting today." Casper glanced towards his son, followed by the rest of the council who were not already glancing towards the young adults. Needless to say, Blu became uncomfortable pretty quickly even though he was used to it. Before things could become too awkward, his father continued.
"The reason he is here is not due to favoritism but academic success. Blu displayed talent in the field which is essential but rather unknown to us, electronics. I want him to accompany a mission we will soon send off to solve our problem."
"Since the necessary parts don't grow on trees, we must acquire them other ways. A recent merchant passed through our tribe and for a rather handsome fee gave us very valuable intel… We know of a place where we can get the parts. Only problem is, the place is right in the middle of a human city." The last three words snapped most out of any stray thoughts which might have lingered in their minds. Just because they used human inventions and were open didn't mean they were automatically trusting or welcoming towards them, after all they were considered a rare species and sought after by poachers.
"Which city is it?" One of the elders broke the one way conversation, since the answer would greatly influence their stance on whatever Casper wanted to propose.
The tribe leader took a deep breath, knowing the answer will not be met with positive reception. "Rio de Janeiro." Just as expected, the room filled with a choking silence once again. Casper could only hope he would be able to get through the council, because no matter how much they will deny it, it is their only option when looking at it objectively.
"WHAT?! That city is literally on the other side of the continent! Not to mention to get there, we need to cross the barren lands." An older woman was next to cry out, her outburst expected but still caused some of the birds to flinch at the harsh volume. Casper was not phased at all, already expecting what she just shared.
"Yes, well, the merchants do it fairly regularly so not like it's impossible. We just need to prepare adequately." He bluntly explained, secretly proud of the simplicity and truth behind it. Before anyone could continue to object or change topic, he continued. "The barren lands are problematic for entire tribes to cross because of the lack of enough food. Small squads of less than ten members can find more than enough to live happily if they chose to." Nobody could come up with a valid counter argument and thus had no real reason to object, causing the tribe leader to form a subtle smirk in victory.
"Judging from your reaction, I assume you already have a flight plan laid out?" A council member broke the silence, his tone normal, emotions stoic. Casper liked that one, because unlike most elders who were as conservative as a bird could be, that macaw was open to change and didn't like it when people bullshitted, and the council tended to do that often.
"Correct Mr. Moniz. One of my assistants will deliver them shortly now that the council approved my mission." The answer satisfied the old macaw, earning a quick and subtle nod in acknowledgement.
"Then lets discuss the people involved. Please list the team composition and a small explanation why that particular macaw was chosen." Maceo Moniz continued on before someone could derail the conversation, he could still see some of his fellow councilors not happy with the decision.
"I'll list the people, their role and then the reason if that is OK with everyone?" Casper glanced along the group of blue macaws, looking for any sign of protest, vocal or body language included. After finding none, he sorted through a few notes before finding the one he needed.
"Mark Lopes, team leader and frontal guard."
"Rodrigo Nunes, rear guard."
"Sara Costa, human culture professor."
"Blu Gunderson, electronics trainee."
"Lucas Ramos, guard trainee."
"Diana Simas, human culture trainee." He finished listing the people in question and as expected multiple eyes rose at the last two names and their occupations.
"Now for the reasoning behind this rather unusual team composition… We need Silvio to stay here and keep the current generator running for as long as he can, which means I need someone else to get the parts necessary… Blu is the only one in the tribe who can pull this off right now. There is simply no room for error, we cannot allow for the retrieval team to bring back no or god forbid wrong parts." The tribe leader finally directed his gaze at the three young adults next to him, clarifying their roles to everyone in the room. The trio understood why Blu was called, since the problem was pretty much an electrical crisis, and even Lucas's position as a bodyguard could be explained, but Diana was still lost, her confusion clearly visible on her face. She gathered all her strength to speak up and ask what her part would be, but an elder beat her to it.
"I can understand why your son and the security officers are going, but why the specialist and other two young macaws? I'm sure the youth are promising, but another guard would suit better than this Lucas fellow." An aged female from the council took the pause as an opportunity to ask, her voice now hoarse due to her age, but the tone carried wisdom much greater than the current leader's was.
"I was hoping someone would ask this. The reason is very simple actually, Blu was not the only one who was top of his generation. Lucas Ramos is exceptional is sports and won multiple dueling championships in school. His talent caught the eyes of multiple generals, one going even as far as to ask permission to drop the then still child and enroll him the military for special forces training." Needless to say Lucas almost had to catch his beak before it hit the ground in shock. He was a good fighter and while the military life did interest him, he never really got a big enough mental push to pursue that career. The newly acquired fact that generals wanted to recruit him was a big shocker for sure. He had to muster up everyone ounce of self control to not storm the macaw leader with questions right there and then.
"As for Miss Diana Simas… She is a promising student who showed natural talent in handling people. Unlike Lucas, Human culture is actually what she is studying right now." Casper shot a quick glanced towards the young macaw as a silent conformation request. She was uneasy as everyone else directed their gaze at her and she figured the best way to make it stop was just to confirm it.
Diana tried to speak but her words got caught in her throat, so before it became obvious she tripped on her words, the blue macaw quickly nodded in confirmation. The blue macaw leader smiled and glanced back to continue. "I want her to accompany Mrs. Costa and do some field testing while also observing the human culture in Rio, more specifically their education, law enforcement and leadership system in closer detail."
A couple of council members frowned the moment he finished his explanation, realizing just what the younger macaw wanted. A male in particular sighed heavily, bringing up his left wing to massage his temple in frustration. "You are still adamant about that? Casper, I believe we have gone over this before."
"We never really gone over it. We debated yes, but never decided. I still believe it is time we look past the old system. But I believe you are placing more attention to that than necessary, right now the specialist will only learn about the culture, and we can debate once we know more."
"In that case, fine… There is one other thing that bothers me though." The male councilor admitted defeat before raising another problem. He waited for a moment and took the silence as an invitation to elaborate further. "Both your son and his friends are legally adults as of this year, but is it truly wise to send such young souls into the wild? Even with skilled guards like Mark Lopes, what if they get separated? How will they defend themselves? Basic training is not enough for the jungle."
"That is actually one of the weak points of this plan of mine. It might very well be that neither of them can stand up to the challenge. Mark will host a test later today to determine their combat effectiveness. If they pass, it will be less of a headache for us, but should they fail we will just assemble a different team." Casper elaborated, reassuring the council he made sure to take the youth's safety in consideration.
"On top of that, there are still logistical problems to sort out, which means if they pass they will have approximately one week to prepare. I'll make sure Mark himself molds them into capable fighting shape by then." Casper answered, looking towards his son and his two friends with a small grin on his face, knowing exactly how the scarred macaw teaches. Even if he deems them unfit and by that throws all his plans in the trash, he thought whatever the macaws pick up will be more than useful in their lives at some point.
The three birds gulped hard at the ominous sounding statement from the Spix's macaw leader, his grin not helping them calm down even a little bit. God help us. Blu thought to himself, knowing that grin very well, and he did not like it one bit.
Several hours later
Once the issue was properly discussed and settled for the time being, Casper and the council turned to less important topics concerning various issues and suggestions regarding the tribe. Unfortunately for Blu and his companions, his father requested them to stay in case something urgent came up… Nothing happened. So now three macaws who are bored half to death left the main building, intending to go to their first destination under the leader's order.
"Am I the only one who finds this situation weird? Don't get me wrong, I'm more than happy to go on this, but isn't it a bit wrong that we didn't get any say about this? Like a confirmation or something. I'd get it if the boss was some pushover strict militaristic man, but your dad is probably the most laid back leader ever, that's the reason I bring it up." Lucas ended the silence between them, curious what his friends thought about the predicament they found themselves in. Blu was feeling a lot of things but didn't know how to form them into a coherent sentence so he stayed silent.
Diana on the other hand knew exactly what to say, albeit not happy. "You are so dense sometimes, you know that? The tribe is basically under martial law because of the situation. Under that, he can command every adult with whatever he wants. The only reason he did not declare it officially was because panic might erupt and if word gets out to our enemies we are screwed." The explanation seemed to have satisfied the man, who replied with a silent sheepish smile in embarrassment.
Before the topic could be dropped, Diana's retort gave Blu the perfect base to form his own reply, which he used to complement the woman's answer. "Not to mention, if other macaws realized that human technology can actually erode like that, it would give them even more confidence to harass us even if we fix the issue. That is not something we need right now… or ever to be honest." He spoke the last sentence under his breath, mostly telling it to himself but his friends were within earshot and heard it anyway.
The rest of the way was spent with idle chatter about the day and the sudden crisis on their hands, right until they flew close enough to their target to have it within view. The group glided north towards a smaller structure which was guarded possibly better than the tribe center itself. It was rectangular like most of the human buildings, but what made it different were two very apparent things. The first was a bunch of wires which originated from a top post, running down the side and then into the ground. Although it was not visible, Blu knew they connected to various lamps and fences as well as a few buildings, giving them the necessary power to function even after all these years since the humans left.
The second was actually a rather uncommon sight to see when it came to buildings. A small, only about two meter wide creek flown through the whole camp, splitting it in two land wise. There were multiple bridges across, but most of them were from wood and have since broken down due to the lack of maintenance. The interesting thing was that this stream flown under the building in question, and not many birds knew the reason why.
As the trio flew down, the guards spotted them and once they realized the group was flying towards the structure, a single officer flew up to question them, but before the two could confront each other, something happened and the guard backed off without a word. This caught Blu by surprise and he looked back but couldn't see anything. He turned back by instinct and just in time to slow his descent, allowing him to gracefully land on the dirt.
Two guards on either side of the door stepped aside, allowing them to enter. The three macaws quickly walked inside, uneasy due to the cold stares they received from the birds protecting the area. Lucas figured it was a scare tactic to keep people away, which made sense, this was the power plant after all. The interior was nothing special, a few human chairs were next to the wall, while on the opposite side a receptionist desk occupied most of the space.
There was another door right in front of them, and they could hear movement inside, but what really surprised them was the rather loud sound of water flowing. Due to being in a closed space, the creek's flow echoed around the room, making it much noisier than outside. The trio made their way to the second door and when they passed it, they became one of the very few macaws who could see the tribe's most guarded secret.
The room's floor was made completely out of cold, rough concrete, not allowing any vegetation to take root whatsoever. The ceiling was a tangled mess of wires, which all originated from a single point opposite of the entrance. They realized the creek didn't flow under the building but through it. The middle of the concrete floor was carved out, allowing the water to flow through undisturbed. On both ends, the wall was open and a wire fence made sure nothing could get in or out apart from the fluid.
The left side opening and water bed was as wide as the creek itself, but after about a meter, it started to narrow down until it was barely fifteen to twenty centimeters wide. Due to the narrowing, the waterflow was much more powerful, possibly strong enough to knock off a full grown macaw of it's talons. The water flown in a strange metal tube before exiting to a concrete bed once again as wide as the outside. The metal pipe's top was connected to a formless contraption which the wires originated from.
Suddenly a light blue colored macaw appeared from behind a table, making the trio jump a bit until they realized the bird meant no threat. "AH! Blu! Your father told me to expect you. Hi, my name is Silvio, head mechanic of the Spix's macaw tribe." The blue macaw introduced himself, holding out a talon in greeting, his green eyes filled with curiosity.
Once Blu got over his initial shock, he grabbed the talon and shook it, smiling at the excited macaw. He was glad for it, because for some reason in his mind smart people in charge of important things tended to act like a stick was up their ass all day long. "Pleased to meet you. This is Diana and Lucas, friends of mine. They will accompany me on the mission."
"I see. Well orders are orders, if they were let in then they can do whatever they want… Actually scratch that, not everything though. Please, do NOT touch anything, I refuse to take responsibility for electrocution." The mechanic warned them with a serious look on his face, and once he saw that the young adults understood, he turned around, motioning with his wings for them to follow.
"As you can probably guess, this is where we get our electricity. The floor amplifies the water's power, flowing that through that metal pipe. It has turbines in it which spin thanks to the water, and that big thing on top is the generator itself." He explained how it worked, earning a wow from the group behind him. Lucas and Diana were awestruck by the sheer size of it, while Blu was impressed how simple designed it was. The fact that this thing continued to work 24/7 for decades after the humans abandoned it spoke volumes of their engineering skills.
"What is actually causing it to fail? This is my first peek at it, but I can't find any problems. No rusty or oxidized wires, no leakage anywhere." Blu spoke up, going right to business. As much as he wanted to stay and learn every detail he could, he understood how serious the problem was and didn't want to waste a single second if he could help it.
"Good eyes Blu, Casper was right about you." Silvio complemented the insight before offering an explanation. "The problem lies beneath. You just came in the perfect time, I was about to inspect it anyways. We will need to turn off the waterflow before we can get inside though."
"Excuse me, but wouldn't that lead to a power outage?" Diana queried, not showing particular interest in the subject but she was curious enough to know how they would tackle the problem. The mechanic smiled at the question, happy to answer it.
"You are correct Miss Diana. It would lead to a power outage, but we have the perfect tool to combat that problem." He turned towards the opposite side of the room, a wingtip pointing towards a bunch of rectangle boxes with wires coming in and out of them. The shapes were eerily familiar to the trio, and the blue macaw's following answer confirmed that to them. "We got batteries for the downtime."
Seeing no further questions on the young adults faces, Silvio quickly stretched his body before he leaped in the air, flying over to the table next to them, his talons scraping the metal on landing. "Let's turn off this baby." He walked over to a rather big lever, grabbing the handle with his left talon. He shifted weight to his left talon, gathering his entire body's strength to pull the lever towards him. For the first few seconds nothing happened, but after that his strength overcame the resistance and successfully pulled it.
The trio heard a clank, like metal hitting metal before something opened up before the generator's entrance. The newly formed hole and gravity forced the water to drop down instead of flowing inside, blasting off the other side missing the metal pipe completely. For a moment the lights seemed to dim before returning to normal strength. They could hear a few creaks as the generator came to a full stop a few seconds later.
The mechanic picked up a small screwdriver… for human standards. He calmly flew over to the generator's base, motioning the others to meet him. Diana and Lucas hesitated for a moment, thinking the wires were too close for their comfort but Blu just charged ahead, no fear in his eyes whatsoever. This gave them the courage to follow him, later on landing next to the mechanic with a respectable distance to make sure they were not in the way.
Silvio unscrewed six screws as delicately and graciously as a macaw could, revealing the precious insides. Of course for Lucas and Diana, it looked like jumbled mess of wires and metal, even Blu was having trouble identifying what each component's purpose was. He could immediately see that it was not normal however, as rust and other dirt plagued the insides like a vile illness.
"The… armature and commutator is rusted? And I see the coils are all but gone now." Blu tried to guess the problem, his voice full of doubt and confusion.
The other macaw was surprised how accurate his deduction was one again, even if it was not entirely correct. The statement turned to question half way still earned Blu a proud nod from the mechanic. "Almost. The commutator is not broken, that's the shaft. But other than that, excellent observation. Remind me to scold your father as much as a subordinate can his superior, I could have used a helping hand like you around here."
One hour later
The trio entered the next run down building without too much difficulty. After they finished talking to Silvio, the group headed out for their next destination. The guard let them through the moment he recognized Blu, who was thankful the word spread quicker than before. This facility was much more packed with macaws, although the average age was equal to their own. Just as they passed the reception, a loud bell interrupted their thoughts, causing all three to get closer to each other as they prepared for the upcoming assault.
Just as they predicted, the doors soon enough opened up unleashing dozens of macaws, flooding the hallway as they made their way to either their next class or home. The trio made their way through the crowd, looking for a specific room as they dodged macaws who were either in a hurry or didn't pay attention. "Why couldn't Mrs. Costa call us, I don't know, at the end of the school day? I did get my week off after all." Lucas grumbled as he nearly missed a young woman who sprinted past him, probably late for a class.
"When did you become such a crybaby? This is your second complaining today." Diana retorted with an annoyed tone, slightly shaking her head in disbelief. She didn't need a pouting Lucas on top of her problems, but although she wouldn't admit it, she kind of agreed with him on the matter. The man was about to disagree but decided against it in the last second when his eyes locked on a room number. The group dropped everything they were doing and walked up to the entrance, thinking about who should open the door. A bird beat them to it.
"Oh." Sara was startled for a second but recovered herself when she realized who they were. "Right on time! Come in, welcome, it is so nice to see you three." She greeted the three macaws enthusiastically, motioning her wings as a come in gesture. She was rather tall for macaw standards, and a distinguishing feature was her two differently colored eyes, emerald green and golden yellow to be exact.
The trio quickly walked inside before a student could realize where they were going. As soon as the professor closed the door the ambient volume dropped so much they felt a bit empty without the constant chattering of macaws all around them. The room was not big for human standards, but that meant it was perfect to hold lectures for a decent sized macaw audience.
"Please, take a seat, make yourselves comfortable." Mrs. Costa politely offered, indicating towards three pedestals next to his work desk already prepared. The young adults nodded and sat down, patiently waiting for the professor to sit down herself.
"Thank you Mrs. Costa. I suppose you know why we are here?" Diana initiated conversation, not forgetting for a moment the macaw was still her professor and thus superior. Blu and Lucas were listening but judging by their body language neither was really planning to engage too much in the topic, not that she would blame them. After all, she didn't pay that much attention to Silvio when he engaged techno babble with Blu.
"Yes, the tribe leader informed be about your involvement. Now, as all three of you know, I'm not the type of person who likes to beat around the bush, so to properly understand why Miss Diana and I are coming along, you all need to know the full picture… And don't worry, I got the leader's permission to tell you." Sara began her explanation, directing her attention to Blu before she continued. "Mr. Gunderson, do you know what your father is actually planning for the future, leadership wise?"
"Ugh… No." Blu stuttered a bit before he regained his posture, surprised the macaw addressed him so suddenly. The question was surprising as well, because as far as he knew his father mentioned no such thing. Then again, even though he was Casper's son, the blue macaw didn't talk too much about his work at home, at least not anymore. He stopped when Blu was about five years old, and he would be willing to bet his mother had something to do with it.
"As I said before, it isn't exactly a secret, but not that well known either, so I would appreciate it if this remained between us. Nevertheless, you will need to know about it because of the mission… You see, your father wants to abolish the power inheritance system." She let the information sink in and observed the trio's reaction carefully with a smirk on her face she didn't even bother to hide. As expected, their eyes widened in either surprise or shock.
Lucas and Diana tried to subtly glance at Blu to get an idea what he might be feeling. They were half expecting betrayal, anger or dismay but found none of that. Diana swore she saw a glimpse of relief. "Our history is not exactly filled with a stable lineage when it comes to rulers. Not that our neighbors are better but still. This is only a guess, but I believe your father is worried about you." Sara added.
The comment forced Blu to raise an eyebrow at the older macaw. "Worried about me? Why? I'm not in any danger." He bluntly retorted as carefully as he could without insulting the professor. She broke eye contact for a moment, looking down her desk as her demeanor changed dark worryingly fast compared to the cheery attitude they all knew her for.
"Not in danger… at the moment."
"What do you mean by that?" Diana joined in on the conversation, worried about the sudden negative and ominous statement made by the professor. All three macaws made and refused to break eye contact, silently trying to pressure Mrs. Costa to reveal whatever she knew. They could see she was beginning to feel uncomfortable but it was too late now, they wanted to know what she meant by that. Finally, she gave in, sighing heavily in the process.
"Gosh I feel old talking like this, but your generation had the luxury to grow up in a rather stable internal political climate, so neither of you know how bad a power struggle can be. People and sometimes entire families attempt coup d'etats when they feel a particular leader is weak enough." She explained, eyeing the young macaws to see if they followed. Neither made any obvious sign that they didn't understand. "Right now, your father is a strong macaw with near universal support, but as he grows old and viewpoints change, things might go downhill fast."
"He understands you are not interested in leading this tribe and respects it… But he is also terrified when the time comes for you to inherit his title, as people might come after you to secure their own position. Most of the time, birds who assassinate others are cruel power hungry tyrants. And if that happens, then we will be thrown into another civil war which will weaken our position on the map further." Sara didn't know if she should be relieved when she finally saw emotions rise on the blue macaws faces, since those emotions were either horror, disturbed or worried.
"Although not all coup d'etats are necessarily bad. After all, that was how your family got the title after your great grandfather assassinated that tyrant Salvador Vento." She quickly added in an attempt to remedy the situation. It seemed to have worked, although she mentally kicked herself for even going in that direction. She could have just told some other lighter but still true excuse, instead of throwing the worst possible scenario at their faces. Luckily they were taking it rather well all things considered, especially Blu.
Lucas was the next to speak up, eager to get his question through. He understood why Blu's father would want to abolish the current system, seeing how dangerous it could be, but he couldn't imagine any other alternative. "But how does he plan to fix this then? If power will not be inherited then how will the next leader be selected? Whoever gets a flag first or wins a duel?"
Sara chuckled at the suggestion, imagining grown ups fighting over a flag pole to secure their position as tribe leader. "Not really. A merchant mentioned a concept which really caught our leader's interest… It will be the thing Diana and I will closely study as long as we will be in Rio. From what the toucan told us, it really is a simple yet effective way of governing a tribe. I believe he called it 'democracy'?" The professor could see they didn't know what she was talking about and recalled her own discussion with the tribe leader, summarizing the key points in her head with speed which only a teacher could via years of academic experience.
"From what we understood, you give power to the people. Potential candidates are selected and are in power until the next election. So far that is all we know." Sara shrugged at the last statement, a bit disappointed she doesn't know more herself. Blu and Diana seemed to be satisfied by the answer, but interestingly enough Lucas was the one to query further on the issues he saw with this new potential system.
"And how will this help us exactly? Sounds like too much extra bureaucracy work." He questioned without any malice or ill intent in his voice and tone, curious what the potential benefits were and why it would be worth switching a system used by all types of wildlife for literally millions of years.
"It saves royal people from terrible power struggles like Blu here. It also makes corruption harder since the people can just demote whoever leads them badly. But as I said before, that is all we know for now. That is why we are coming along." She finished her explanation, indicating there was nothing more she knew or could say in the matter.
Sara was met with a couple seconds of silence and added before things would turn awkward between them. "Well that was all I wanted to say. Diana, I would like to have a private word with you tomorrow so we can discuss this in more detail." The young macaw understood what she meant and nodded her head in understanding. Mrs. Costa smiled and looked towards a clock on the wall, reading the time one it.
Believing she bombarded them with enough hard truth for a good while, she turned back towards the trio and dismissed them with a smile on her face, although hidden within that impression was a silent 'I don't want to be you right now' which all three of them picked up to their dismay. "I believe you three still have training with that Lopes fellow soon, better get going. I heard his training is quite tough."
Twenty minutes later
The Spix's macaw training grounds were located next to the tribe's edge, consisting of both open terrain and dense jungle trees to cover all possible scenarios a macaw might find itself within the Amazon. This was the place where all blue macaw guards and soldiers learned and honed their skills, but for whatever reason the area was rather deserted today, not counting a few birds here and there doing their own thing.
Just like everyone who reaches mid teenage years, Blu and his friends received the same basic training, so these grounds were not totally unfamiliar to them. As the three macaws soared through the sky, they were looking for a particular gray eyed parrot. Lucas's sharp eyesight found Mark to be perched on a high branch just shy of the training grounds very center. For whatever reason, the parrot had a belt on him. Lucas slowly banked to the left altering both his friends and causing them to look in the direction, understanding why the sudden change in direction.
"Aha! I see all three of you arrived, just in time in fact. Got anything to report?" Mark greeted the trio once they were within earshot, indicating with both his wings for them to land next to him. The young adults did so silently without question, folding up their wings when their talons got a secure hold on the branch, their weight and speed causing the branch to move a tiny bit before becoming rigid again.
"Hello sir, nothing to report." Lucas took the initiative, answering the older macaw's question as fast and directly as possible. Blu and Diana chose to just nod in greeting, having nothing to add to the conversation or Lucas's statement. Mark's gray eyes scanned through the three parrots in a probing manner, openly showing them he was sizing up each individual.
"I see… Well then, before we do anything, let's get over this little test to see if any of you are even ready to step outside our tribe." He informed them but his tone had a subtle change in it which all three picked up on. It was no longer the casual tone they knew him for but much more strict and authoritative in nature. This caused them to adjust their posture and pay better attention.
"An added bonus is that this test will also measure your base skills so I will know how to approach you three on a personal level and as a whole. One week is laughably little to improve, but we work with what we have." Once his 'suck it up' statement was passed, a quick flick of his right talon caused all three to jump in surprise when three additional blue macaws with long sticks on their backs descended from above, catching them off guard.
They failed miserably to hide this fact and it caused the veteran to chuckle slightly. "Well I see we will have to work on situational awareness for one thing." He commented aloud but gave them no time to think about it as another flick signaled the new macaws to remove the stick and throw it at the unsuspecting trio. All three of them managed to catch it, even if they were a bit clumsy in doing so. The one closest to the scarred macaw also gave him three shining balls suspended by thin red threads.
After that, the new macaws silently leaped in the air and were gone without speaking a word, causing Blu to raise his eye. The confusion was not lost on Mark and realized it was time to get to work. He raised the three balls which made subtle clanging noises, showing them off to the trio. Bells. What does he want with bells? Blu questioned within himself, and his facial expression told Mark to explain.
"Your job will be very simple. To prove yourselves fit for the job, all you have to do is get a bell from me before nightfall. Whoever fails to acquire one will be removed from the mission." The gray eyed macaw explained their objective with a visible grin on his face. Before either could respond, he spoke up once more. "Do not get comfortable. It may very well happen that all of you get one or neither. Rank and family has no meaning here." He added, a grin appearing on his face. He will be enjoying this.
Mark quickly tied the threads to the makeshift belt and turned ninety degrees on the branch, extending his right wing towards his now confused pupils, while repositioning his legs to get a better grip and support his balance. The bells chimed as he moved, which means stealth will probably not be used by him. The stance he took was familiar and sure enough, all three of them recognized it. "Now remember. If you don't come at me with intent to kill, you will not get a bell."
The order was understood right away and the young adults got into position. Diana leaped off and landed on another branch, since her sight was blocked by both Blu and Lucas. It was simply not wide enough for all three of them. Seeing as they were as ready as they could be, Mark began the test. "BEGIN!" His deep voice rang throughout the area, causing all three macaws to raise their guards but neither moved. So, neither wants to open huh? Could it be they figured it out so fast? He thought to himself, observing his new opponents closely.
Diana was no fool, she knew Mark was a skilled fighter and the fact he didn't even bother to bring a weapon with him meant that he was either really overconfident or knew they were nowhere near good enough to touch him. Whichever it was, there was only one way to know for sure. She suddenly leaped off the branch, quickly exchanging the weapon from her wings to her now free talons. Turns out she was only a second faster than Blu, who stopped himself in the last moment, not wanting to get in his friends way. It seemed Lucas followed similar logic.
Without any distraction, Mark was easily able to turn his attention at the incoming macaw, waiting for her to come closer. Diana attempted to swing the stick, her aim was to hit the scarred bird's right shoulder, which would remove his ability to get into the air, thus giving Diana a very valuable edge. Unfortunately, her well thought out plan failed miserably when Mark quickly ducked and caught her stick, firmly holding it in place as her body continued to soar through the air.
Mark used the movement's direction and the stick to spin her around, practically tossing her away like a slingshot. The female hit a nearby branch, rendering her useless for a good while. With Diana temporarily out of the picture, Blu felt comfortable enough to charge ahead, aiming to knock the macaw off his feet since he had no weapons to retaliate. Due to throwing Diana away, Mark's back was turned towards him, giving Blu the false illusion of being in control. He prepared to swing his stick, aiming at the opponent's talons, but in the last moment he hesitated realizing he was not really an enemy.
His hesitation caused him the engagement, because the ruckus he made along the way alerted the macaw of his intentions and Mark turned around. Without even thinking, the older macaw punched the leader's son in the stomach, not hard enough to cause injury but it managed to knock the wind out of him. Blu dropped the stick and held his abdomen in slight pain, dropping down from his talons to his stomach on the branch.
The first and only surprise until now was delivered by Lucas, who suddenly appeared behind the dropping Blu, intent to hit his target. Mark's eyes widened, but he managed to recover himself before the stick could make contact with his body. He brought up both wings, catching the stick and managing to block off his attack.
The impact was strong enough to actually push the gray eyed macaw backwards, his talons scraping the tree bark beneath them. Using the fact that Mark holding the stick acted like a base, he flapped his wings to cancel out the remaining forward momentum, landing on the branch before the older macaw could use the situation and send him flying away like he did with Diana.
He tried to momentarily overpower the veteran but quickly realized he was getting nowhere in that department. He quickly moved back, grasping the weapon tightly, forcing his opponent to let go. Casper was right. This kid is good. Mark thought to himself, approving of the skills his student showed, but disappointed that Lucas too failed to show the one quality he was actually looking for.
The young macaw launched himself once again, using his stick to hit the macaw on the head. This forced Mark to block his attack with both wings, leaving him open. This is it! Lucas thought to himself in victory, extending a talon to reach one of the dangling bells. The scarred macaw shot him a bored glance, quickly jumping up, using the stick to easily stay in the air and jump behind the other bird. Lucas cursed the opponent's fast reflexes, turning his head around to see what the scarred macaw was up to.
The following moments caused him to curse his own slow reaction time, because the older parrot punched him right in the face, causing him to ease his grip on the weapon, later on releasing it completely as he fell back on the branch, instinctively holding up his wings to his face to sooth the pain. Mark jumped back just in case, observing the other two macaws as they recovered from his earlier assault. "Seriously. Are you three even trying?" He taunted them with a boring expression, not impressed with their performance one bit.
"Ow. Of course we are trying! This ain't fair!" Lucas snapped at the blue bird in anger, quickly forgetting the pain he was experiencing. He quickly got back on his feet and prepared his body to charge when Diana landed in front of him.
"Suck it up kid, life ain't fair. Your enemies won't give a shit if a fight is fair or not either." Mark remarked with a snort, preparing for the woman's assault.
For the next two hours, the three young macaws kept charging the blue bird, trying all sorts of tactics and timings, but ultimately they failed to get a bell. The only thing they could show for their efforts were a few lucky hits and sometimes just barely brushing one of the silver balls with either wings or talons. Nightfall was fast approaching, causing all three of them to stress out. Coupling with the fact that all three of them were extremely tired, the situation looked completely hopeless. The worst part was the fact that Mark didn't even look a bit tired at all. All he did was throw in a random insult or taunt now and then, further going under the trio's skin.
This is beyond stupid! He is an elite warrior, while we are basically civilians. How did he or father even think any of us could get a bell?! Blu thought to himself while he panted tiredly, watching as Lucas engaged the blue macaw with various kicks and swings. He glanced up at the sky and could see the sun approaching the horizon. We might have an hour before sunset. There is no way we can break his defense.
As Blu watched the fight unfold, he could see Lucas losing the engagement, even though he was desperately trying to catch the scarred parrot off guard. From the corner of his vision, Blu saw a furious Diana charge in, attempting to tackle the opponent. No way that will work. He chuckled, waiting to see if his prediction came true or not. Unsurprisingly, the female's attack was dodged without much effort. He was about to glance away to occupy his mind when something clicked inside his head.
He watched as Lucas dashed ahead, extending a talon towards one of the bells closest to his body. In a normal one on one that was a foolish move, but Blu's eyes grew in surprise when the blue eyed macaw almost managed to snatch it. If Diana attempted to tackle him a few seconds later it would have worked…
…
…
WAIT! THAT'S IT! He screamed internally, slapping himself as a form of self punishment for not realizing it earlier. If we can't get it ourselves, we should help each other. After all, he didn't say anything about how we get the bells.
The realization gave him a huge adrenaline rush, erasing all the fatigue and pain he felt. We need a plan. And fast. He dashed forward from his place on the branch, flying towards Diana who just recovered from her failed attack. She was about to leap in the air when she saw the dashing macaw coming towards her. She tensed up, thinking Blu was somehow trying to sabotage her, but the blue bird landed in front of her, chocolate brown eyes looking into golden yellow. "Diana, we need to fetch Lucas and get away for a while."
"WHAT?! Blu, we are almost out of time. We don't have time to rest." She retorted immediately, almost shouting at the bird in front of her. Thankfully Mark and Lucas were too involved in their match to notice, at least that was what Blu hoped.
"We've been at it for hours now, and Mark doesn't even look tired. Look, it is quite clear neither of us can get a bell from him on our own… We need to work together." Blu reasoned, not removing eye contact with the woman, studying her every reaction. At first he was met with anger, then confusion and finally shock. She was mad at herself for not realizing sooner, but a punch's noise caused her to focus on the world around her once more.
Both birds glanced towards the sound's origin, catching as Lucas fell down on the branch once again thanks to a punch Mark delivered to his stomach. Without even a word, the two Spix's macaws dashed forward. The scarred bird looked to his right after hearing talons scraping the wood and saw the two adults charging right at him. Hmm, they are charging together… Perhaps… finally? Mark questioned himself, bracing himself for their impact. For once, he had to fight the urge to smirk at the development, choosing to remain as stoic as possible.
Their actions were met with a mix of disappointment and confusion, because the two didn't tackle him, in fact they flew right past him. He turned his head around, following their forms only to see them grabbing the downed macaw and flying towards the dense canopy of a nearby tree, disappearing from view. What could they be up to now? He questioned himself, going into a defensive stance and watching his surroundings for a possible ambush.
"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?!" Lucas yelled in a confusion, trying to get out of their collective grasp but failing to do so. Blu and Diana continued to fly until they were sure their teacher was out of hearing range before landing on a tree's wide branch, releasing the fussing Lucas in the process. "Explain yourselves!" He demanded angrily, standing up and glaring at the duo.
"Calm down big boy. Unlike with us, it seems like Mark managed to beat out the dumb from Blu… Care to explain?" Diana lightly scolded the blue eyed macaw, later turning towards Blu and looking at him for a detailed explanation. The leader's son quickly nodded and began by telling his thought process.
"Like I explained to Diana, we can't beat him by ourselves. We need to work together and come up with a very solid plan to take the bells from him… Besides, he didn't tell us how to get the bells. Only to have one before nightfall." The reasoning Blu provided made Lucas shut up and think. Just like Diana before him, he wanted to slap himself when he realized how much sense Blu made. He simply nodded, agreeing with the team up. Blu smiled, glad to see they could cooperate. "Alright. While we decide on this, we can use the time to rest a bit. So… here's what I think."
Half an hour later
Mark was resting on the branch's base, his back against the jungle tree's trunk as he glanced outwards. He got tired of standing on the edge like an idiot, expecting an attack that was not coming. The scarred macaw was starting to get excited when Blu and Diana dashed away with Lucas, hoping they might have figured out the test and prepared for a joint attack. But that happened half an hour ago and no sign of them anywhere. He was concerned they might have just gave up and left, but surely they wouldn't be that rude and not tell him right? After all, he had better things to do too, seeing his wife and kids for one.
The macaw closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh, not sure what to think. The sun was very close to the horizon now, which meant the chances of them to snatch a bell were running out fast. As he relaxed, his hearing became sharper to compensate for his current lack of vision. He could hear the ambient jungle noises coupled with a few very faint voices which didn't belong to his new pupils. Mark was about to stretch his body when suddenly his ears picked up cracks coming from in front of him.
He quickly opened his eyes, just in time to see a blue blur flying towards him with almost blinding speed. His body quickly tensed up and the bird was in the air a moment later, just barely missing his attacker. He quickly turned around mid flight to see as Lucas banked to the left, aborting his tackle attempt before he crashed into the tree trunk. So he used the time to rest up? Huh. That won't help you son. He thought to himself, preparing for battle once again.
Mark was about to land on a nearby branch to take his defensive stance when he heard wing flaps from below him. His eyes quickly shot down to see the source of the noise, only to see Diana charging at him with her stick ready to stab him. He quickly dodged the macaw, but by the time he was out of danger Lucas managed to recover and flew below him, stopping him from landing. He wants to keep me in the air. But did he just use the opportunity Diana made or did they plan it together? His questions couldn't be answered because he was suddenly busy dodging Lucas's claws.
Diana was next to block his attempt of landing, and that move solidified Mark's theory. The two macaws were definitely working together. He was actually surprised how well Lucas was fighting, considering how drained his stamina was. What Mark failed to realize was the reason why the male was attacking the way he did. Each attack was dashing forward, forcing the older macaw to back away from the tree.
Whenever Mark managed to completely dodge an attack instead of blocking it, his escape route was blocked by Diana. "Keeping me in the air won't help you that much you know." He commented, but got zero response back. Both macaws continued their strategy, confusing the gray eyed macaw more and more. Where is Blu thought?
Finally after a few minutes of this rather intense assault, Diana made a mistake and cleared an opening for the older macaw to escape. At least that's what she wanted him to think. Not wanting to waste the opportunity, Mark quickly flew past them, landing on the closest branch. His two attackers didn't give him too much room to breath, following him and landing on opposite sides. The scarred macaw glanced up at the sky and saw it was now orange, indicating the sun will be down any minute now.
He took up his defensive stance and waited for the duo to make their moves first. Lucas dashed forward, his stick raised in order to land a blow on the macaw's head. He easily blocked it, locking both of them in place. He heard Diana charge at him from behind, trying to stab him through the back. Just in case, he angled his body to the side just enough to dodge the attack while making sure that as she passed him, he could change the angle enough that it won't go through Lucas by accident.
Once the two macaws recovered from the failed attack, they charged again, but this time their assault was shamefully blunt and easy to counter. Using his wings, he grabbed both sticks and held them firmly. He made sure to extend his wings so his opponents had to step back unless they wanted to risk being disarmed. This distance made sure he was safe from any kicks or bell snatching. The three macaws were now in a deadlock, the two younger ones glaring at the center bird. "You two have certainly improved. But this is not enough to take the bells." He taunted the parrots, but instead of the rage they displayed earlier, Lucas remained calm while Diana smirked.
"Who said this was all?" Diana mocked, the tone of her voice sent shivers down Mark's spine. "BLU! NOW!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, causing the older macaw to frantically look around the area. Once his hearing recovered from the female's shout, he heard a faint whoosh noise coming from behind him.
WHAT?! He exclaimed to himself, failing to react in time to the threat he just managed to identify. The two macaws let go of their weapons and jumped backwards, just moments before a bola hit Mark in the back, knocking the wind out of him instantly. The sudden obstacle caused the thread to bend, forcing the two heavy balls at both end to start wrapping themselves around the macaw's body.
Mark looked up and could see the sun, the brilliantly orange disk was almost completely hidden now. He glanced downwards when he saw something on his peripheral vision. Once his eyes focused on the low light levels, he saw a grinning Blu dashing towards him full speed, claw extended for one of the bells on his belt. He heard Diana and Lucas jumping at him too. Incredible, what marvelous teamwork! Did they just toy with me and hid their abilities all this time or could they just sync up well after figuring out the true reason? Heh… Looks like this test is over. The mix of shock and frown on his face was replaced with a smirk of his own, which caused distress to his three opponents.
Just before they made contact and could snatch the bells in question, the veteran moved his body in a way he could utilize the three macaws extended and sharp talons. As he tilted his body, the claws which were supposed to get the bells were met with the bola's vines, cutting them without much effort at all. By the time the three realized what happened it was already over. The macaws flew off in opposite directions while Mark jumped away, regaining his lost freedom.
The trio quickly recovered and cussed that their plan failed when they could practically taste victory. They landed on the branch with Mark, surrounding the macaw. Blu was so occupied with his trap that he failed to realize just how dark it was. He glanced up and horror morphed on his face. Lucas and Diana caught on and looked up, trying to find out what the terrified macaw was looking at, after all it was not like their teacher would attack them.
"FUCK!" Lucas shouted in rage, watching helplessly as the Sun's now blood red disk fully disappeared below the horizon. The younger macaws let out a collective sigh and relaxed their bodies in defeat. It was nightfall, and neither of them had a bell. They failed.
"We were so close…" Blu grumbled under his breath, fighting with his own emotions. He didn't want to rage like Lucas did, even though he was beyond angry. The chance was there, it was perfect, and they blew it. Once they got their emotions somewhat under control, the macaws looked at the gray eyed parrot, preparing for their defeat to be announced. Great work Blu, you managed to fuck up your father's plans. Blu scolded himself, but like his teammates, his face quickly displayed confusion when they saw that Mark was smiling at them, looking proud.
"Congratulations! You all pass." He exclaimed, never dropping his smile, and his voice didn't contain even a drop of sarcasm or lying. For the next few seconds silence filled the air around the four macaws.
The trio's brain just crashed and was in the middle of a reboot. Blu was the first to break the silence with a simple but astonished question. "What?" Mark just chuckled at the reaction.
"The test was never about getting the bells. I'm a seasoned veteran who saw war. You three are fresh out of school. There is absolutely no way either of you could have gotten one… Know why we place new soldiers on teams of three?" He asked the confused macaws, who managed to finally snap out of their daze and think properly. They shook their heads, having ideas but nothing concrete.
"Teamwork. Everyone excels at something, while lacking in other areas. By placing people in teams, everyone can cover each others weaknesses effectively." He explained, earning understanding nods from his three pupils. After all, it was not a hard concept to understand. "I'll be honest, you three came very close to failing, but managed to prevail at the end. The teamwork displayed was phenomenal." His smile never faded away, but internally he started to get a bit worried by their dumbstruck expression. Mark was about to say something but refrained from doing so, and later on he was thankful for that decision.
When the full reality sank in for the three macaws, Lucas was the first to form a big goofy grin on his face, raising his fist formed wings high in the air, yelling in delight. "YEAH! WE DID IT!" The sudden outburst of energy had a drastic but positive effect on his teammates.
Diana was shocked at first and that later turned into a sincere smile as she laughed, not caring what the others might have thought. "We're in. We're really in." A few stray tears escaped her eyes, but the young woman wiped them away without anyone noticing, at least that was what she hoped.
Blu remained silent but there was absolutely no way anyone could have wiped off the grin on his face. He looked over to his two closest friends, proud to be on the same team as them on this no doubt dangerous mission. Yeah. We did it.* He repeated to himself, enjoying the moment. Mark was silent, he didn't want to interrupt their celebration but sadly time was not on their side.
"I really hate to be the party pooper of the group, but before we finish this no doubt exhausting day, we need to discuss a few things." The veteran macaw chimed in, catching the younger birds attention. They finally managed to calm down, reducing their excitement from yelling to just grins and smiles. Once Mark saw that he can speak freely, he did so.
"We have exactly one week before the mission starts. We will have training exercises every day to improve a lot of things. Situational awareness, speed, attack and defense form etcetera. First thing in the morning, 8 AM. Don't be late." The gray eyed macaw explained, earning a firm nod from each macaw in front of him. Seeing their exhaustion kicking in, he decided to end the day there.
"Dismissed." The three Spix's macaws leaped off the branch and were gone within a second, blending in on the now starry and black night, leaving the scarred veteran alone on the tree.
…-…-…-…-…-…-…-…-…-…
Honestly, I don't even know why I keep trying to excuse my horrible update times if I don't do anything to change it…
I should have told this earlier, but I guess better later than never? I set up a forum, so if you want to have open discussions with me feel free to check by my corner on the internet.
Also, friendly reminder I made a discord server for this archive if any of you are interested in more real time interactions with me and others. Links in my bio.
See you all in the next decade!