Author's Note: Hi guys! So, ever since my school began I've been getting hours of homework and studying each night. (I go to a challenge school.) I've been getting really overwhelmed lately so I'm just going to start updating every weekend. You can expect a new chapter every weekend, happy reading. Thanks. XOXO- Skai.
Somewhere over the North Atlantic, I began questioning Max's voice. Sure, the Flock said to trust it, and I did… For the most part. But, still, the idea of following an anonymous voice floating around in someone's head made me want to rethink things. Call paranoia or intuition, either way I had a feeling something was off. I just couldn't tell what.
I was nearing exhaustion when we finally touched down somewhere in Chad at a camp. Tents were pitched all around the campsite, and Jeeps and other cars were parked around the outskirts. People bustled around, although quite a few stopped dead in their tracks to take in the bird kids that had so conspicuously landed in the middle of it all.
"Max!" A large friendly looking man greeted us with open arms. "Hi, Patrick," Max gave him a warm smile. Noting my confusion, Fang ebbed closer to me and clarified quietly, "Patrick works for Max's mom." He greeted everyone with a hug and a warm greeting.
He drew back from Angel, "My gosh! You've grown so much." I envied the way the rest of the Flock had allies, friends even, everywhere. Growing up in lab rooms full of scientists whose only interest in me was the wings sprouting out of my spine never really lead to me making any true friends.
Patrick turned to me, "And you must be the new addition Dr. Martinez was telling me about. She was right, you are quite pretty." I could feel my cheeks grow hot, he let out a hearty laugh. Fang stiffened beside me.
I let out a soft chuckle and smiled. Almost subconsciously, Fang moved directly beside me and wrapped an arm around my waist. I tried my best to ignore tingles that spread throughout my body at his touch. I leaned into him.
"Now, Dr. Martinez told me you guys would be stopping here soon, we have a guest who would like to meet you," Patrick's gaze lingered on Fang and I for a moment before turning back to the others. "Who?" Max asked. Patrick waved a hand nonchalantly, "That can wait, why don't I show you to some tents for you guys?"
Max replied, "Sure." Although the entire Flock exchanged cautious glances, be on alert. We followed Patrick, tucking in our wings to avoid anymore attention.
"Here we are," he stopped in front of two relatively large tents. "The girls can stay in one, the boys in the other." Just as we were about to enter the tent, two young boys went sprinting past us, laughing. They took note of Gazzy and Angel, similar in age to them. "Hey, want play with us?" One asked breathlessly.
Gazzy looked to Max for permission, Max smiled and nodded, "Just don't go anywhere too far." He nodded eagerly, "Okay."
Angel politely declined. "Who were they?" she asked. "The older one is Kota, he's my nephew. The younger boy is named Stefan," Patrick had a sad smile on his face as he explained."He's an orphan, both of his parents were killed by a radical group that invaded their village. We took him in."
A feeling of sadness pooled in my stomach, I never really had parents that I would miss. I assumed losing ones you loved would be even harder.
By the looks on everyone else's faces, I could tell they all were feeling the same surge of sadness for the boy. "Everything has to end eventually ," Angel said morbidly. Fang turned to her, confused. "What?"
"It's true, and sorry to be the one to say it, but either Skylar or Dylan will be the first to die?" Fang's eyes widened, he seemed panicked. "What are you talking about?" "Dylan is dead," I told her, trying to push all of the emotions that came with my words out of my voice.
"No, he's not," she argued. I wanted so desperately to believe he wasn't, but I had come to terms with his death a long time ago. Now, it seemed like Angel was just doing this to hurt me. Trying to convince her I replied, "Angel, he's dead." Fang intervened.
"How do you even know that?" Angel had a condescending look on her face as she stated matter of factly, "Nothing ever stays the same. People grow old and die and wither. And I just know either Dylan or Skylar will die first."
I didn't see why Fang was worried, Dylan had already died first. There was no changing that. I did my best to stay calm, currently I had a fragile mask of sanity covering my tears. If I had to talk about Dylan again I was sure I was going to cry, and I most definitely was done crying given the past few days.
Fang's face looked contorted with pain for a brief second then it was forced back into neutrality. I gripped his hand in mine, "It's fine." He turned to look at me, "She said you were going to die. That's fine?" I opened my mouth to retort but two looming figures were approaching a nearby fire.
"We can do this later," Patrick added. "For now, I have two people I want you to meet." The people were mere silhouettes next to the bright flames of the fire. I could just barely make out one's short, pudgy frame and the other's tall, muscular build.
Patrick lead us to them. Up closer I could make out their faces. When the fire illuminated the tall one's face, I gasped. "Skylar?" He asked. I could feel my lip wobbling. I drew in a shuddering breath, "Dylan?" Before I knew what I was doing, I launched myself into his arms.
He held me tightly to him. "I thought you were dead," he whispered into my hair. He had aged, of course. His jaw was much more pronounced, he had grown about two and a half feet since I last saw him, he was much more muscular and his sandy blonde hair was messy, but I still recognized him. His turquoise eyes were the same.
"I thought you were dead too," my voice was muffled into his shirt. Hugging him was like returning home for the first time, hugging him was like embracing your family. I broke down into tears.
Seeing him was like healing a wound then creating another injury. Knowing he wasn't dead healed the part of me that I always felt was broken without him. But seeing him again lead to a flood of memories of before I thought he was dead.
Someone beside us cleared their throat, "Dylan." He reluctantly pulled away, narrowing his eyes. "Who's this," the pudgy man asked, accusingly. Dylan answered calmly, his voice was deeper, "This is Skylar. We were at the School together, she was like my sister. Then I was told she was dead."
The man looked me over, "I'm sorry to break up your little reunion, but we did come here with a purpose." "I think the purpose can wait-" Dylan was cut off by a stern glare. He fell silent. "Thank you."
He addressed the rest of the Flock, "I'm Dr. Guntherhagan, and as I'm sure you've guessed, this is Dylan." "So Dylan," Fang began. "Where did you come from?" "A test tube," Dylan answered simply. Fang seemed to be turning whatever this was into an interrogation, "But I thought you were experimented on with Skylar?"
"I was," he explained. "But the scientists wanted to see which one of us did better, a natural born person, or a person who was scientifically grown." "And how old were you when you met Skylar?" Fang's question was accompanied with a sharp tone.
"Eight. I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name," Dylan refused to back down from Fang's hard glare. "Fang," I answered for him. "He's my…" I wasn't quite sure how to phrase it. "Boyfriend," Fang finished for me. "I'm her boyfriend."
Dylan raised his eyebrows but made no commentary. I realized something, if Dylan was alive, then Angel was right. I didn't think I could take Dylan dying, again, but what would become of me. It was at that moment Gazzy came running up to the Flock. "So," he said casually. "What did I miss?"
