Chapter 3:
Breakdown
Shade was alone.
It was daylight, and the sun was shinning brightly, high in the noon sky. Although they were now allowed to fly during the day, most bats chose to continue sleeping during the day, emerging at night to hunt. Shade was roosted, grooming his wings. He lifted his head. Picking out a leaf a few wingbeats from him, he took careful aim, and then launched a barrage of sound at it, driving the it into a sharp point. The leaf snapped off neatly at its steam. Shade smiled, satisfied. He had only very recently discovered he could use sound not just to spin echo projections, but to move objects as well. Frieda told him it was rare skill- a skill she herself had in her youth. Although he wasn't very good yet, Shade had made visible progress in moving small objects. Looking for something a bit more challenging to move, Shade focused on a small rock on the ground. He had never tried moving anything so heavy, yet alone from this far away. He took aim, inhaled deeply, then shoot out the strongest, most concentrated stream of sound he could muster. The pebble wobbled, but stayed immobile. Furrowing his brow with concentration, Shade tried again, giving it his all. To his surprise, the rock flipped over. He moved it several more inches before he could go no father. He breathed raggedly, exhausted, but happy with himself.
"Very good, Shade," Shade was surprised to find his mother, Ariel, alighting down on a branch near his own. "The elders have summoned you Shade. Sometimes ago, actually," she panted, sounding weary. "I've been looking for you all morning. I really wish you would stay closer to Hibernaculum."
"I don't get why we have the right to fly during the day, if we never use it," Shade complained. Although he was happy to see his mother, he hoped he would have to see Marina- with Chinook trailing right behind her, no doubt- until the evening.
"How are you ever going to get through Hibernation, if you're so restless all the time? Well, come on. We mustn't keep the elders waiting any longer than they already have," Ariel said, starting to flutter away.
Shade dropping from his roost, and followed after her. She slowed down, dropping back next to him.
They flew in silence for a moment, until Ariel spoke. "Marina's worried about you."
"She is?" Shade stuttered, surprised.
Ariel nodded vaguely. "She's afraid that you're ignoring her."
Shade's only answer was a guilty silence. He had been spending most of his time with Breeze.
"She says you've been acting very... strange lately... distant," she continued. "You mean the world to her, you know. She says you gave a home when she had none, a friend when she needed it the the most."
"Well, she's fitting in just fine," Shade replied, not without a hint of irritation in his voice.
Ariel glanced at him from the corner of her eye and smiled knowingly. "Jealous of Chinook, are we?"
"No, of course not! Why would I be?" Shade snapped, angrily, the skin beneath his fur becoming warm.
"I just want you to remember that no matter how much you two ignore each other, she still cares about you. And I know you do to."
They flew the rest of the way without talking, thankfully. Shade found that Marina was waiting for them- with Chinook of course.
"Shade," Frieda greeted him warmly. "I have some good news."
Shade listened intently.
"We elders have discussed it amongst ourselves, and we've unanimously decided you and your mother have earned the right to look for your father."
Shade listened, speechless, as Marina beamed at him.
"Hector was a close friend of Cassiel's," Freida continued, "He knows where you father was heading last."
"Really?"
"Yes," Hector answered, "He and a few other males went to check out a human building they found found last spring. They never came back."
"If they are willing," Frieda picked back up, "A small group of bats may accompany you, as Hector and I will," she continued, motioning to Chinook's father, who was a Elder as well. "We leave in five dawns."
To Shade's absolute surprise, the first cry of volunteer didn't come from Marina, but from Chinook.
"I'll go!"
Shade stared at him in amazement. Chinook offering to help him?
"I'll come, too!" It was Marina.
They were suddenly interrupted by Mercury. "Frieda! Owl, outside."
Normally this would be a very bad situation, but he and Marina were already sharing a questioning- and excited- glance. "Orestes?" they asked in unison.
As soon as Mercury nodded, both of them were speeding towards the entrance of the cave.
"Orestes!" they both called, catching sight of the young owl.
"Shade! Marina!" he exclaimed, spreading his wings happily.
"Boy, is it good to see you!" Marina said, settling down next to Shade in front of the gentle son of the owl general, Brutus.
"I wish I could say the same thing," Orestes sighed.
"What is it?" Shade asked, worried.
"Both my father's men and King Romulus, of the rats, have reported some missing birds and rats," Orestes said, frowning. "I'm afraid it may be Go-"
"No!" Shade yelled, surprised at the fear in his own voice. "I mean, I saw him being washed down the river. He must of downed," he added quietly, trying to convince himself more than anyone.
"Maybe it was Throbb," Marina said looking at Shade with worry.
"That impossible. My father's owls tore Throbb apart," Orestes argued. "I'm sorry, Shade, but we have to take into possibility that Goth's still alive."
Shade struggled to keep himself from shuddering. It was impossible. He had seen Goth crushed by that ice drift. He was dead. Dead! But, he had been dead at the Towers of Fire, too, a tiny voice told Shade.
"Shade? Are you alright?" Marina asked.
"No," he replied shakily, "No, I'm not."
...
Shade was roosting alone when he heard Marina, Chinook, Breeze, and Todd fluttered down to him.
"So," Chinook began airily, "I heard one of those cannibal bats- Goth, was it- os alive."
"No!" Shade snapped, "I saw him drown. He's dead."
"Shade..." Marina began, before being interrupted by Chinook.
"I don't know what you're so worried about. I mean, if you dealt with him, he can be so bad. I could fight him," he claimed smugly.
"Hey, just lay off him, Chinook," Breeze said.
"Why should I? He's just a-"
"Sure, Chinook, you could have fought him. He just would've ate you. And I doubt you have the brains to outsmart him, if you have any at all!" Shade raged, clenching his fist and grinding his teeth.
"Watch it, Runt!" Chinook said, a dangerous edge to his voice. "I should-"
"Just stop it, Chinook. Look, I don't want to have to deal with a stupid, clueless idiot like you, so flap off!" Shade said, dropping from his roost and hovering in front of a dumbfound Chinook for a moment, before flying father into the moonlight, snow covered forest.
"Now wait just one minute, Runt," Chinook growled, taking off after him.
Shade stopped mid-flight, and turned to face the approaching, larger Silvering. He hurled an echo projection of Goth straight at Chinook, his jaws wide open, wings spread, and claws flexing. Chinook flapped backwards quickly, terrified, and crashed into the tree, dousing himself in a small avalanche of snow. Shade turning around and continued flying.
"Shade!" he heard both Marina and Breeze calling from behind him.
"Leave me alone! I don't want to see any of you!" he threw over his shoulder.
He could help but see the hurt and confused look on Marina's face.
Shade was huddled at the base of a branch, his back to the trunk of the tree. He hadn't meant to sound so cruel, but had just had to get away from it all. Marina, Chinook, Goth. He couldn't handle it much longer. He heard Ariel, Marina, and Breeze calling his name in the distance. He ignored them, due to a mixture of needing to be alone and being afraid of facing Marina and Breeze after his breakdown. He buried his head into his wings.
"Feeling a bit down, aren't we, mi amigo?"
Shade's eyes shoot open. Before he could throw himself into the air to escape, a set of enormously strong claws wrapped around his throat. He felt his body being hauled up and slammed against the trunk of the tree, as if he was as light as air.
"Shade!" that all too familiar voice cried out in mock jubilation, "I'm so glad you could make it for dinner."
A reply caught in his throat, Shade could only stare in horror at the bat that had been haunting his dreams since almost- almost- meeting his demise that day in the river.
"Guess what's on the menu." Goth laughed darkly, giving Shade a hungry grin.
…
Finally! Our villain truly enters the story. And it is a tiny bit longer than the first two chapter.
Tell me what you think.