Part VI: Assimilation

The Forgotten Forest, for all its weird food and above normal temperatures, was actually very similar to the Great Valley. The first thing Ducky noticed was how there were a lot more longnecks here then she was used to. The young swimmer had nothing against longnecks… in fact she would be friends with anybody who wanted to play! But therein lied the problem; the games the residents of this forest played were the type that only a certain kind could participate in – like Tree Munching, Drinking Contests (water of course), and aggressive games like Seed Charging. It's not that the young longnecks didn't want to include her and Spike, it was just that they weren't used to having to accommodate friends of different types. So inevitably, Ducky, Spike and Petrie found themselves sitting and watching, while dozens of longnecks had their fun.

There was a time when Ducky did not understand why Ali didn't want to play with them, back when they first met, but now it seemed all too apparent. Ali had only ever played with other longnecks before, so she must have been intimidated by them at first. The changes that Littlefoot was going through recently were similar to those that some of the older longnecks were experiencing. The change had come for Ducky too, but unlike Littlefoot for her it was on the inside. She was coming to realize that the world was not as nice a place as she imagined it was.

"Hey Ducky, Spike, isn't it great here!" proclaimed Ali as she waded in from the river and shook herself off.

The other longnecks were playing a pretty rough game of water toss the seed, which unlike the Great Valley version featured no rules in regards to contact. Were Ducky in the mood, it might have been fun to watch them beat their teeth out. As it was though, she was feeling left out and couldn't share in Ali's enthusiasm.

"It's alright… I guess," sighed Ducky as she sunk into her hands. Spike let out a groan of boredom, and slunk down to his belly.

"Aww come on guys, your ruining the fun," stated Ali, but none of the three of them looked too happy.

"There no fliers here, it so boring," added Petrie as he lied down on Spike's back. Another longneck broke off from the game, which was picking up quite a bit now that the score was tied, and joined the group of them on the riverbank.

"Nah, it's because the wingtails chased them all out," snorted Shorty, who had gotten over his fight with Littlefoot. Ducky rose up suddenly at the comment.

"You mean-ed there are more like Sky?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, over the Spiketail Hills there's tons of them," responded Shorty casually, "I wouldn't go over there though… they're pretty stuck up."

"What do you mean?" asked Ali in alarm. She had thought that, apart from the one that attacked Sky in the caves, wingtails were nice and intelligent creatures.

"Last time one of the hatchlings wandered over there, they nearly ate him," replied Shorty, "luckily his folks were nearby to drive them off. That's why beyond those Hills are off limits – it's where they live."

"Hey, flyers!" exclaimed Petrie excitedly.

The group of them turned their heads towards the sky, and sure enough a group of no less then five wingtails was gliding over the glen. Four of them seemed to be concentrating on the path ahead of them, while another black one darted from side to side, scanning the ground for something. As the echelon passed over the pool of playing longnecks and the group on the shore, Ducky recognized the wingtail as the one who attacked them in the cave. From this close, he looked even more menacing.

"That one is bad, he attacked us in the cave, he did!" called out Ducky.

"What, he attacked you guys?" interrupted Shorty as he stomped on the ground in rage, "let the overstuffed freak come down here and I'll teach him a lesson. Nobody hurts Ali on my watch."

Ali sighed and lowered her head to the water to take a drink. Littlefoot wouldn't be happy if he found out Shorty was flirting with her again. It was probably best not to tell him.

Bron had approached Littlefoot that morning and offered to take him on a trip through the woods, to show him around as well as to get some "father-son time". His father had been quite busy lately, between discussions regarding supposed sightings of sharpteeth within the forest – dismissed as illusions – and the awkward behaviour of their closest neighbours the wingtails. On top of this, Bron was invited to a few nests at the last minute to watch baby longnecks hatching from their eggs. The mothers of the valley had deep respect for him, even though he had not chosen another mate.

As the morning sun rose higher in the sky Bron trudged along slowly as Littlefoot followed him. Littlefoot was absolutely full of things to talk about, and his father all too happy to entertain him.

"This is such a beautiful place dad… how did you find it?" the young longneck asked.

"The herd and I have wandered quite a bit over the past few seasons Littlefoot, just like our kind always has, stopping only to rear the young. After we visited your valley, many of us came to realize that we were better off finding a place of our own to settle down… a place where we could always eat and be safe from sharpteeth. This forest was lush, green and empty… it was the ideal choice."

"But what about the Great Valley, you could have stayed with us, with me. There's plenty of food for everybody," said Littlefoot as he jumped up briefly on a rock and then hopped back down. Bron laughed lightly at the comment.

"Oh I don't think there would be enough room for all of us, not to mention the reception we got from your neighbours the last time we came for the Longneck Test," Bron responded matter of factly.

Noticing that this conversation wasn't going anywhere productive, Littlefoot decided to ask another question.

"Dad, what's happening to me?"

The question was so surprising, Bron stopped and curled around his massive neck to face Littlefoot directly on the ground.

"What do you mean Littlefoot?" he asserted.

Littlefoot shied away a bit, and looking down at the ground in shame he batted a rock with his foot.

"Well, a few great circle rises ago I went to the river for a drink and I noticed my face had... changed."

Bron laughed in a friendly manner.

"Don't worry Littlefoot, your just growing up. I remember when I was your age it happened to me too… mysterious lines under my eyes, and some feelings I've never had before."

"Did you ever, you know, get this weird feeling whenever you were around a girl?" asked Littlefoot a bit timidly. He decided not to mention the fight with Shorty.

"Of course I did Littlefoot, you are in love," Bron answered.

"In love," repeated Littlefoot as he raised an eyebrow in confusion, "but, it will go away right as I get older?"

Bron stretched forward and licked Littlefoot with his long tongue, knocking him back. Littlefoot laughed, as a faint childhood memory surfaced of his mother doing the same. When he was around Bron, it was like she was with him again if in part.

"I'm afraid not, love is permanent and carries with you for the rest of your life. It was like that between your mother and I when we were kids," Bron recalled.

There was another question Littlefoot wanted to ask, but he wasn't sure how to word it properly. In the end he decided to make it up as he went.

"Dad, there's more to it then just this… weird feeling right?"

Bron frowned. There was more to love then just affection and desire, but he wasn't sure it was time to reveal it yet. Littlefoot was just coming of age, and it was up to him to discover the most important pact love possessed. If it was a tale of a story speaker, then it was up to his son to reach the ending of his own accord. It took the large longneck a few moments to compose his answer.

"There is, but I'm afraid I can't tell you that part. It is for you to find on your own."

"But what if it comes, and I don't know it when I feel it?" asked Littlefoot in fear.

"You will know, trust me," reassured Bron.

He remembered his first mating, back when he was still a young adult with barely the second line under his eyes. He had feelings for another female, a young beauty who sat beside him during story times and played together with him and his friends during the day. They sat talking together one night under a shady tree and it just sort of… happened. Their relationship didn't last however as she found another male more suitable to her tastes. Such was the fickle nature of love, but as fate would have it Littlefoot's mother proved to be the girl of his dreams. He still hadn't forgotten her even so many seasons after her death, and he saw her everyday in their son whom he was now raising. The Great Circle sometimes had a funny way of doing things, but often it worked out for the best.

…

Bron's tour of the valley ended up turning into one long walking conversation between him and Littlefoot. They caught up on each other, joked around a bit, and the large longneck even showed Littlefoot the `top-secret` diving rocks where he could have lots of fun jumping from a huge height into the water below. It wasn't until later that afternoon that they were hailed by some unpleasant guests.

The five wingtails found them just as they were enjoying their dinner in a forested glen on the east side of the river. They landed in the trees nearby, and one of them piped up.

"Now listen here longneck, we're here to-" began Glide aggressively, but he was cut off by one of Eybron's senior guards present with a wing slap to the flank.

This situation was far too delicate to be so careless, since they were addressing the leader of their neighbours. As if relations weren't strained enough without Glide making an ass of himself and their kind. The black wingtail glared at his attacker with contempt, and crossed his arms in displeasure.

"We are here seeking the one known as Bron, the acknowledged leader of these herds… would you happen to be this longneck?" asked the most senior of Eybron's guards.

"That would be me," responded Bron, but he didn't stop eating nor turn to face them.

It was his right and dignity, considering this was a surprise gathering and not one they bothered to inform him about. There was a time when he respected and admired the creatures, but after so many quarrels with them, sometimes over senseless things like attacking hatchlings, he had lost his patience.

"Good, we are here seeking another of our kind, one who has committed crimes against his fellows and must be returned for justice," the senior wingtail said officially, "this one goes by the name of Sky."

Through the tree Bron could see Littlefoot on the other side and out of view of the wingtails. His son had stopped feeding and was shaking his head. Bron took note of the gesture and turned to respond to his guests.

"I'm sorry, but I haven't heard of someone of that name. He mustn't be bad; otherwise I would have had to deal with him already."

Bron's scorn was not lost on Eybron's guards, and many of them scowled with distaste.

"Very well, then we request that you allow us to search your valley for any trace of his presence," the senior replied.

Bron saw no reason to deny them this.

"You may, but don't make any trouble. There are lots of hatchlings around in these times and there will be no tolerance for any sudden aggression. Am I clear?" Bron asserted.

All the guards ruffled their feathers in insult, but Glide didn't. Something caught his eye that was moving in the tree behind the large longneck, and he squinted to get a better look.

"Move out," commanded one of Eybron's wingtails, and all of them but Glide departed.

Suspicious, Glide decided to conceal himself within the leaves and he shimmied over slightly on the branch so he was out of side. After about a minute Bron looked around, and turned to the bushes.

"Okay Littlefoot, they're gone… you can come out now," he said.

Littlefoot emerged from the other side of the tree and swallowed a mouthful of treestars. After he had taken care of that, the young longneck turned to his father.

"Thanks dad, those wingtails have been after us from the start… after Sky," Littlefoot summarized with a tinge of bitterness.

"Well then it's a good thing I didn't tell them about your friend, now at the very least they don't know he's here."

It was all Glide needed to hear. His eyes narrowed with anger, and he hissed at Littlefoot from the tree. The small longneck jumped back in shock, and Bron growled from the depths of his throat.

"Go on, get out of here!" Bron shot venomously as he used his tail to swat at the tree branch Glide was resting on, "scram!"

Glide took off long before the clumsy longneck could hurt him, and continued to hiss at the both of them as he departed. There would be a reckoning for these ignorant longnecks, one way or the other. First in line though, was the fate he had in mind for the traitor Sky when he found him.

Bron snorted as he watched the cowardly creature flee from his wraith, before turning with a dire look towards Littlefoot who returned with a worried expression. Contrary to the best efforts of Eybron's guards, Glide had managed to make an ass of himself towards their neighbours.

…

The two longnecks were so distracted by the whole episode with the wingtails, that they didn't notice the sound of claws skirting through the leaves, or the suppressed growls of hate and blood that advanced through the woods. They didn't notice the eleven sets of devilish yellow eyes watching them hungrily from the bushes, or the almost silent snarled command of attack.

After a week of waiting, watching and lurking Tyron was finally making his move.

Sky literally felt like he could walk on air. The morning sun was warm and pleasant on his feathers when he awoke that morning, and it was like the entire world had lit up to his occasion. Last night was probably the best night of his life, and when they finally drifted off to sleep Star had pressed against him with her head and rested against the side of his neck. The feathers on the back of her head brushed against his chin, sending chills up his spine. It was disappointing when he awoke that morning, early as always, to find she was gone.

It could very well have been a dream, but Sky didn't think so. For starters, he felt so light and carefree today that it couldn't have been a dream. He loved her, and she loved him back, and he had been given the chance to express it. He really wanted to see her again, and perhaps settle down with her for the rest of his life. Now all there was to do was to end this charade… he would have to return the Occular.

Sky tapped the inside of his wing, but there was nothing. The wingtail gasped in shock, Star must have taken it! His feeling of elation disappeared with the wind as it dawned on him that she probably used him to get at the eyeglass. It couldn't be, he thought, their experience was just too intimate, too real to be fake. Either way, she had the Occular now and was probably taking it back to the elders on her own. If he was lucky, the deed would clear his name so he could finally come home.

The blue wingtail flew around for most of the morning, lost in his thoughts. Around lunch time he found a nice pool to go fishing in. After a few passes he managed to snatch a good one out of the water. Landing on the bank, he proceeded to bang it on the rock to kill it so he could eat.

Nearby, a trio of young longnecks watched with curiosity. Their parents told them scary stories about wingtails, saying that they would come gobble you up if you misbehaved. Now that one was here in person, was it here to eat them up for being bad? One of the group, a small beige female, got too close and slipped in the mud. She cried out in surprise as the dirty ground carried her right down to where Sky was by the pool.

There was a moment of awkwardness as their eyes met, before the longneck barely older then a hatchling burst out crying.

"Please don't eat me, I'll be good, I'll be good I promise!" she hollered through the tears.

Sky had seen some fairly amusing things in his life, but this one took the sweet bubbles. He set the now limp fish down onto the rock and set about reassuring the youngling.

"There, there, I'm not going to eat you," The blue wingtail said.

"You're… not?" the child asked timidly as she sniffed.

"Of course not… we only eat water-swimmers and other things that live in the lake. The mean ones will sometimes scare you, but really your too big for us to eat," Sky lectured as he symbolized some of the things he said with hand motions so the child would understand.

"So… you're a nice one?" inquired the child who had for the most part stopped crying.

"You might say that," chuckled Sky.

"Help, help… Sharpteeth are in the forest, help!" came a sudden shout through the forest.

A middle aged longneck came roaring through the trees a hundred meters away. He continued going through the forest, repeating the message over and over inciting panic in the sparsely group longnecks, who rushed to find their children as chaos set in.

"Oh no, what have I done," whispered Sky in horror as he remembered the fast-biter he saw in the forest the day before. He had been so caught up with Star he had completely forgotten about it.

In a shot the wingtail took off from the riverbank, leaving the dead fish on the rocks. If Tyron was here then he would go first for the leader of the herd – Littlefoot's father.

…

The fast-biters attacked so quickly that Littlefoot barely had time to cry out before they were on him. Seeing he was doomed the longneck sunk to the ground and covered his head to wait for the end. Bron jumped forward to protect his son as fast as he could, but due to his enormous bulk he was too slow. To Littlefoot's surprise, the fast-biters ignored him entirely, and one of them even hopped onto his back and off again as he moved forward. It was clear that they were here for Bron and Bron only.

The large longneck roared with defiance and rage as they snapped and slashed at him, targeting his calf muscles. The sounds of the fight reverberated throughout the entire area and through the screeches and hisses of the fast-biters and Bron's low pitched roars the crescendo was as deafening as it was brutal.

"Dad!" cried Littlefoot out in alarm.

"Go Littlefoot, run away as fast as you can!" his father shouted desperately.

Blood was now running down Bron's legs from the places where the sharpteeth had bitten him, and they weren't relenting either. The longneck was ten times each of their size, but there were so many of them he was being overwhelmed. One of them hit the mark, and slashed the muscle on his left rear leg. Unable to sustain his weight anymore Bron fell to the ground and continued to fight off the rest of the pack in anyway he could.

"Run Littlefoot, run!"

Littlefoot was so traumatized he stood on the spot, staring at his father and trembling in fear. For the second time in his life, things were happening so fast that there was nothing he could do. In moments, his father would be dead and they would come after him with blood and murder in their eyes. There were no friends here to help him now, they were either far over the horizon or way out of his reach… he was alone.

A piercing, rumbling roar reverberated through the trees and stopped the fast-biters in their tracks. With unerring discipline they halted their attack, leaving Bron bloodied but alive. Tharon was approaching.

Sky swooped down from the air and landed right next to Littlefoot. One look around and he knew exactly what was going on… they had to leave and leave right now.

"Littlefoot, come with me we have to go!" shouted Sky.

The young longneck didn't listen… he was still staring straight forward at his father. The wingtail could clearly see he was going into shock.

"Snap out of it!" cried Sky and he regretfully slapped his friend hard in the side of his head with his wing, "Tharon is coming… he's here for your father and if we don't go now we're next!"

"Huh, Sky?" asked Littlefoot in a daze, "Wha… who is Tharon?"

"It doesn't matter, come on!"

Sky pushed Littlefoot towards the dense brush and the longneck obeyed. As the two of them disappeared into the ferns the fast-biters made no attempts to follow them. Their job was already done… Tyron had gotten his wishes of them. Now it was up to Tharon to fulfil his task.

The massive sharptooth approached slowly, taking his time. It wasn't like he needed to hurry, the prey wasn't going anywhere. As he neared the downed longneck, he tightened his lips revealing rows and rows of deadly teeth. This was his favourite part of the show.

"I'm not afraid of you, sharptooth!" called Bron as he rose his head off the ground to fully observe his killer.

Tharon snarled, it was more fun when they had some fight in them. He opened his jaws as he closed in for the kill. Bron let out a massive roar of defiance and hit, and then closed his eyes to receive his death. A moment later, the air was split by a thunderous snap.

…

Littlefoot heard the roar and came out of his stupor.

"Dad, No!" he shouted.

The longneck tried to go back, tried to make any attempt at all to save his father his closest living relative, but it was too late. There was nothing he could do. Sky landed in front of him, stopping Littlefoot from running back to his doom.

"It's over Littlefoot, there was nothing you could do," Sky said calmly.

"No, it can't be, not again," sobbed Littlefoot.

Tears were pooling in his eyes and starting to drip down his face. Sky sympathized with his friend, but they had to leave this place and leave it now. It was wrong to have stopped here for so long.

"Come, we must find your friends before those sharpteeth do if we are to have a chance of escape."

Littlefoot took his front foot and wiped the tears from his eyes. He could be sad later… now was a time for action. Sky was right. With this task and the sharpteeth on their minds, Littlefoot completely forgot to tell Sky about the wingtails that were after him. It would turn out that it didn't matter… they would meet soon enough.