I'd like to thank my three reviewers: Katie, alicat259 and Saerphe. I definately was not expecting so many, so quickly. So, since you were all so nice and reviewed so soon, I've got the next chapter here, just for you!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Storm Hawks nor the song "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap.

Chapter 2: Sinking Feeling

Crop circles in the carpet

"Okay Piper, you can open your eyes now." her father whispered as he placed his daughter on the floor.

By the time Piper gained the courage to open her eyes, her father had left the room to get supplies for the journey he had explained they had to take.

The young girl gazed around the tattered room. It was like a tornado had hit. The usually neat and tidy living room that her mother had taken such pride in was now in shambles. The floral patterned sofa was torn, its feather stuffing strewn across the floor. Her great-grandmother's rug had holes and burnt marks disfiguring the animals that ran around its green field. The curtains had fallen from their rods and lay lifeless on the floor.

The room looked – sad.

Sinking feeling

"Finn!" he heard his sister calling from behind him.

He turned his head to her, his movements slow and uninterested. He saw her struggling against the tide of people that were running at her. She tried to shove through to crowd to get to him, but the current of frantic arms and legs continued to push her back. Her eyes were wide with fear.

Finn soon got bored of watching his sister's struggle. Ignoring her calls, he turned back to the swarm in the sky.

They were very close now. He could see the faces of the people. They had these funny, round helmets on, and circular goggles. The looked kind of like the bugs he had first supposed them to be. Each man had an identical, menacing sneer on his face.

Finn's eyes grew wide with fear. His stomach felt like it had dropped to the dirt below. He didn't like the looks on the men's faces. They looked – evil.


Spin me round again

"Finn!" he turned as his sister grabbed his arm, having finally reached him.

She pulled him into a nearby ally, crouching to cover him as the first skimmers landed, others circling around overhead. A wild wind followed them, blowing his sister's long, golden hair all around the pair.

"Come on Finn, we've got to get home." his sister said, grabbing his hand and dragging the small boy along behind her.

"What's going on Grace?" he asked, "Who are the men on the skimmers?"

"They're Talons." Grace replied, picking up her pace.

Finn's little legs could hardly keep up with his sister's sprint. He fumbled and tripped a few times, but Grace didn't stop. She would just yank on his hand to keep him up and balance him out.

The sounds were overwhelming. The frightened screams, loud and chilling. The sizzling of crystal powered weapons. The roar of fire consuming everything in its path. The thumping of stampeding feet. The blood chilling laughter of the Talons. The cries for help that no one answered.

And rub my eyes,

Time passed slowly for the pair lying still on the small terra. Neither moved as the sun continued its course across the sky, its rays baking the young boy's pale skin and the creature's sensitive nose. The high sun's heat and the dry ground gave the friends no relief, nor the encouragement they needed to remove their weak bodies from the burning ground.

It wasn't until the sun was hidden behind the horizon and the cool evening air brushed past his burnt skin that Aerrow found the strength to bring his arms underneath him and push himself up into a sitting position.

Groaning from the pain the few movements caused his stiff body, Aerrow looked around wearily. Behind him, not ten strides away, was the opening of what appeared to be a cave. Slowly, he crawled over to investigate. Arriving at the cave's mouth, Aerrow was surprised to hear the comforting sound of running water.

Turning back to Radarr, Aerrow waved his friend over, not bothering to try to speak in his parched state. The little blue creature observed Aerrow wearily for a few moments, but finally, with a sigh, also pushed himself up and, with great effort, dragged his hurting body to where his friend sat awaiting him.

Radarr's ears perked as he heard the inviting sound Aerrow had earlier. They continued on together, following the sound of swirling water and the feel of the ground beneath their hands. After what felt like eternity, Aerrow felt his hand slip on a sudden downgrade in the rock floor. Head first, he felt himself falling downwards, quickly being surrounded by the cooling depths of a pool of clean, clear water.

Thankfully, the pool wasn't deep, and once Aerrow was able to get his bearings and found the bottom, he stood to find the water only came halfway up his chest.

With a laugh, Aerrow dived right back in, gulping in the welcoming liquid. He heard a splash that signalled to him that Radarr had followed him in. They drank deep and long, enjoying the feeling of the cool water running down their sore, dry throats. When the pair could drink no more, they lay back and allowed themselves to float lazily, being spun in small circles by the slow current of the river that flowed through from some unknown source.

It was then that Aerrow noticed the opening in the cave's rocky ceiling just above them. The billons of small, crystal like stars shone in the midnight blue sky. The full moon's greyish light fell through, alighting the small cave. Around the edge of the pool, Aerrow now saw that there were many small bushes, each covered in plump, juicy berries in many shades of blue and purple. Paddling over to the closest bush, Aerrow grabbed handful of the delectable looking berries and shoved them into his mouth. The flavour was overwhelming to his taste deprived mouth. The berries were richly sweet. The dying juices seeped down his face as he smiled in satisfaction.

"You've gotta try these Radarr!" Aerrow called, turning to his friend.

However, Radarr was already at a nearby bush, stuffing his mouth with as many berries as he could. Aerrow laughed at the sight of his friend's puffed checks. His hunger soon took over though, and he joined Radarr the filling of their empty bellies.

I hope you're all enjoying the fic!

For any of you who are also reading my "Better Days" oneshot collection, now that I've got this all written up, I'll be back to working at those oneshots (which I have all planned out, I just got to write them!)

Thanks for reading, and please review!