Chapter 4

Flightless

When Goth had first found the lone silverwing, he had been certain that it was Shade.

He didn't know why the sly little runt would follow him, and he hadn't cared, in that moment all he saw was a chance for revenge. It was only when he got closer that he realized the bat he had trapped was not the silverwing he had thought it was. And then he had realized the opportunity he had. Here was a new guide, one that didn't know of his kind, one that could lead him back home. He would get his revenge on Shade someday, perhaps he would return the next summer with bats from his kingdom to wreak havoc on all those who had dared spite him, but right now that line of thought was not top priority. He knew he was strong, both in body and spirit, but even he could only last so long in this climate. Another few weeks here, and he would probably die.

So Goth reused the same tactic as he had when he had first met Shade and Marina, he played the charmer. Things had gotten off to a bumpy start with the early near-fatal mix-up, but the little silverwing's initial hostility had quickly melted away. It was obvious to him that she was scared of traveling alone.

Goth had latched onto this weakness as soon as he had noticed it. He knew how to use bravado, and he knew those lesser to him flocked to it like moths to light.

But then the silverwing had decided to test his patience.

It took a lot to make Goth lose his temper, but as of recently he had found his usual reserve much more easily strained. But he remembered how quickly Shade and the brightwing had fled once they had realized what he was. Threats could work, but the last time that he did this the smaller bats had fought back with such convincing lies and wit, that they had made it practically impossible to cooperate. If this little bat in turn decided that she distrusted him, she would surely seize the first opportunity she could to flee; and this was not something he wanted to risk. It was only because she somewhat trusted him now that she had returned to tell him of her planned betrayal, rather than simply leaving. Threats would break this feeble trust.

Threats and intimidation would be his last resort, but a resort he would take if necessary.

It would all be much easier if she simply cooperated, and he could continue to play friendly traveler until he no longer needed her.

But now...now she couldn't fly.

The thought of simply ending the matter there and then by killing her did cross his mind. But this was too risky, Goth hadn't seen or heard any other bats since the icy river had torn him away from Hibernaculum, and he knew that northern bats were normally hidden away at this time of year, asleep and out of sight. If he lost this guide his chances of finding another one were slim, especially one that would willingly travel south. But staying here until the silverwing had recovered enough to fly again seemed like a grueling choice.

He knew there was an option which required no patience, he could fly for her. It wasn't perfect, he didn't want to carry her, it would slow his flying and tire him faster; but in this situation this seemed like a small matter.

Right now the little silverwing was trembling, frozen in place as if afraid that moving would hurt her, and she was looking at him, terrified, as if it were he who had damaged her wing. He still had no idea how bad the damage was, and knew he had to be careful in how he approached the problem; if he came off as too concerned he might make her suspicious but if he was too callous she might panic and resent him.

He knew that little birds sometimes died from panic, they had done so before when they were still wriggling in his talons – he wondered if the same was true for little bats.

"Is it that bad?" he asked. She looked away from him and down at her wing.

"I think so," she said quickly. "Maybe if I rest-"

"Then something else might come looking," he said before she could weasel her way out of the situation. "Rats sometimes eat their food alive if it's too weak to fight back."

"Well what do you suppose I do?" she snapped fearfully, a little anger tingeing her voice. Anger was good, he didn't want to deal with a despairing silverwing. He had no time or patience for that. The sooner he got back to the jungle, the better.

"You could roost somewhere high so they cannot reach you," this wasn't meant to be a helpful suggestion; convincing her that she couldn't stay was the goal.

The little bat looked as if she was about to agree with him, but then her eyes narrowed as she realized the implications of his suggestion.

"And exactly how am I supposed to get up there?!"

"You think that I would abandon you?" he questioned as if shocked. "I can be your wings for as long as you need." And he would not give her a choice, she knew that if he left her she was good as dead. Goth would continue flying southward, and she would be his guide for as long as he needed her.

"You're going to stay here?" she asked, hopeful.

"We're flying south," he told her, keeping his voice level so that it sounded like a statement rather than a demand, make it sound as if it was he who was going out of his way to help her. "If I were to leave you here you'll surely be eaten, or starve. You northern bats are not very big, I believe I can carry you without issue."

She looks uncertain, nervous, frightened; then she seemed to gather her courage together.

"Alright," she agreed determinedly, but he could see the fear behind her brave facade. "We'll continue flying south. You have my word."

Her frantically beating heart felt as if it was threatening to escape her chest, Dawn knew panicking wasn't going to help the situation but it was hard not to. Honestly, she wanted to cry. Her newest plan to get back home had just crumbled right in front of her, she couldn't stay here, she couldn't even fly!

But Goth still needed to travel south and he was offering to fly for her, to keep her alive, in exchange.

She was so glad she was not alone.

"May I look?" he asked, indicating her injured wing.

"I'd rather you didn't," she protested, shuffling back a step.

"How bad is it?" he asked bluntly. "Is your wing broken?"

"I don't know," she mumbled fearfully. "I don't want to think about it."

Goth moved forward, this time not asking for her permission, he clasped the wrist of her injured wing gently to hold her still. Dawn didn't protest, just wincing slightly as she felt the tips of claws ghost over her shoulder. She stayed still as he examined her wing.

"It's not broken," he confirmed to her relief. "Try unfurling your wing."

"I don't want to," she replied nervously.

"Well, my little wounded bird, you need to," he told her simply. "I can fly for you, but how will you hold on with only one wing?"

Dawn relented.

"Fine," she flexed the fingers on her injured wing briefly, they moved just fine, her shoulder still protested painfully at the movement though. But Goth seemed satisfied with the result.

"Then let us leave this place."

...

Though they were no longer over the city, there were still many human structures dotted about the place. Larger quieter buildings that appeared to breathe mist into the air lay ahead. With sunrise only an hour or so away now, they dove down amongst these buildings in search of a roost. One such building had its great windows pushed ajar to allow a large pipe through, there was easily enough room for Goth to fly through – even so the experience was nerve-wracking for Dawn who feared she might be knocked off into the snow below.

Landing proved to be somewhat awkward.

Goth perched upside down, and Dawn couldn't quite reach the ceiling from where she was. But rather than wait until this could be corrected, Dawn tried to climb backwards, rather quickly, but flying or not this still required her to use her wings. She slipped and tried to catch her grip with her injured wing. And that hurt.

Instinctively she let go. The next moment she found herself hanging in mid-air, Goth having caught her by the leg before she could fall far.

"You are persistent little creature," he chuckled. "But perhaps not very wise, what do you hope to prove?"

"That I'm not a lost cause," she said, giving up on saving her dignity, there was none left anyway – she was a flightless bat! "That I'm still alive!"

"You won't remain so if you fall," he remarked, pulling her back up again. For a moment she was flush against him and Dawn felt her face heat at the unexpected closeness. Goth seemed completely oblivious, waiting patiently for her to find her own foothold before letting go of her.

Without warning his head snapped up, sniffing at the air.

"Throbb was here," he suddenly announced, looking around the cavern.

"Who?" she knew he'd mentioned the name before.

"My brother-in-law, he was here," Goth frowned. "I will be gone only a short time, wait here."

"Okay," Dawn replied as he flew away, then added irritably; "I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

Pfft, couldn't fly...

She waited patiently at first, then impatiently as time dragged on. She tried to sleep, but unfamiliar with her surroundings, alone and unable to fly, she felt too uneasy to close her eyes. Dawn began counting the cracks on the ceiling out of boredom.

Several more minutes ticked by.

Sighing, she looked around the cavern for something to do. She couldn't go far without flying, but Dawn decided she would have a look around while she was waiting for Goth to return.

Her wing was no longer hurting insistently but it still ached painfully whenever she tried to use it, this included climbing. But it wasn't as bad as flying, climbing was bearable, so Dawn was able to move away from the spot she'd been left. And if she held her injured wing to her chest, she could half hobble half shuffle, moving awkwardly but still moving. She wanted to explore, having never been in a human building like this before.

About five minutes later, Dawn had moved into a completely different cavern within the building. Here she could hear a strange rumbling sound like many waterfalls hidden deep beneath the ground. There were a few humans in this room too but it was such a big cavern and they were so far down below her she didn't fear their presence – even so she made sure to keep out of sight.

She explored a little further, shuffling quietly along the wall, using a small ledge upon the side to climb on. Some of the strange artificial structures that made the noises were built into the wall too, and Dawn could climb directly over them. On her way she found a few small moths caught in cobwebs, she ate these hurriedly, trying to reassure herself that she could still obtain food for herself.

Deciding she had seen enough, Dawn began to make her way back to where she had came. Flying would have been faster, easier, but she didn't have that option, and had to climb her way back, which was again uncomfortable. Distracted with this discomfort, and unfamiliar with the area, she found herself in a different cavern having taken a wrong turn.

This new cavern was empty and cold, at one end there was a great opening through to the outside. She thought this room was empty too, but she was wrong. Dawn smelled them before she saw them, and hurriedly flattened herself against the wall, holding her breath. She knew owls were blind in the nose, they could not smell a thing, but their hearing was just as good as any bat's, their sight phenomenol, and the slightest move could give away her position.

"That's what I was informed," one of the owls said to the other. "A treaty, agreed upon by General Brutus himself."

"But doesn't make any difference to the hunt, right?" asked the other. "There have been sightings here only today, it might just be pigeon talk, but I won't feel safe until they are all exterminated!"

"The same here, my hatchlings have long since learnt to fly but they are still new to this world, I don't even want to think of them coming across such unnatural flyers," the third owl hooted diligently.

Dawn listened with increasing horror, she realized they had to be talking about bats!

"General Brutus is of the same mind set," said the first owl. "Which is why we will not stop this hunt until we are certain they are gone. The two of you need to inform Hercules' squadron as soon as possible, so that in turn all squadrons westward and eastward of here are on high alert. I must return north now to inform the general that I have passed on the message. Good hunting to you."

"Good hunting," the other two replied.

With that, the largest of the owls took off into the night air, leaving the cavernous building.

This was bad, Dawn knew, from what she could understand, the birds were talking about hunting bats, and not just that, but genocide! She'd heard the word treaty but discarded it without much thought, knowing that it probably involved some pact between more owls.

Even she was certain the messenger owl had left, and Dawn waited until the other two owls had finished ruffling their feathers in preparation for flight and had left. Only then did she allow herself to breathe a sigh of relief, when Goth suddenly dropped down beside her.

"Ack!" she yelped before she could stop herself.

"Senorita?" he questioned, sounding a little irritated.

"How are you so quiet?!" she questioned shocked, then hurriedly shook her head in impatience. "Doesn't matter. There are owls around here, I think they're hunting us!"

Goth looked out towards the opening to the outside world, listening. Dawn shuffled closer to him, knowing he was her only method of escape should the owls return.

"They were speaking about finding bats, it sounded like genocide!" she added hurriedly. "Why would they do that? We've lived in the forests just as long as they have. What could they possibly gain from killing us?!"

How could this have all stemmed from just one curious newborn wanting to just glance at the sun?! It was absurd! Dawn couldn't help but feel partially responsible. Maybe that morning if she'd been hunting with Shade - or at least keeping an eye on him - rather than gossiping with other morose second-yearers, none of this would have ever happened.

"Don't worry, they are gone now, and they do not know we are here," Goth reassured her. "Come with me now, this place is too cold."

"Did you find Throbb?" she asked him, as they left the cold cavern behind.

"Eh? No, he's already moved on," Goth said. "But he was here only hours ago. Maybe we will catch up with him."

Goth landed upon the horizontal top surface of a boiler this time, so it was easier for Dawn to climb down. He lept back up the wall, when she began to climb up after him he offered her a hand.

"Allow me to be of assistance, senorita," he said. "It is the least I can do."

"Erm, thanks," she replied uncertainly as she took his hand. She felt his claws encircle her wrist, then Goth lifted her as if she was weightless. "You're really strong," she muttered.

He flashed her a charming grin; Dawn hurriedly looked away in embarrassment.

"Tell me more about your home," she coughed to break the awkward silence. Goth was unlike anyone she had ever met, having spent much of her life in Tree Haven she was used to the worrying of mothers and the immature groaning of newborns (and second-years more often than not). If they were to be traveling together, it would probably be a good idea to know a little more about him and their destination.

"The jungle is always a lush green, not the faded blue grey of the trees here," Goth eagerly delved into the topic right away. "The canopy is splashed with color, the forest so warm and the air so thick you could glide on it for many hours with barely the twitch of a wing. And there was good hunting, food as far as the eye could see."

"Are there any bugs?" she asked tentatively. "You know, for me? If I'm gonna be spending the winter there I'm gonna need to eat."

Goth looked at her, as if amused. "I don't think you will need to worry about that, senorita."

"Oh, that's good," she tilted her head to look at him. "You know, I've never heard of bird-eating bats before. The owls would be in uproar if they knew of your existence," she told him almost accusingly, but there was awe in her voice and she was sure he was picking up on it because he was smiling in a self-satisfied way again.

"There is no fear of owls where I am from, bats fly whatever hour they choose," he told her proudly.

"Sounds like paradise," Dawn murmured tiredly.

"Oh, I'm sure once you are there, you will never want to return here."

"So if the bats are bigger in the south, does that mean the bugs are bigger too?" she asked, imaging giant moths and beetles.

"Yes, we have larger bugs, ones worthy of eating," he boasted.

"So are the owls there larger too?" she logically assumed.

Goth grinned.

"Not really, in fact some are much smaller," he told her. Dawn smiled at the idea of little owls, it wasn't that she didn't believe him, the idea was just amusing.

"Smaller than me?" she asked hopefully.

Goth looked at her with one eye, then shook his head. "Not quite so small."

"Oh well," Dawn shrugged. "There goes my plans of chasing them around for a change."

"There might be a chance yet," he laughed. "So, how did you end up out here? You never told me your story."

"My story?" she said, what harm was there in telling him? "Well, this was my second year migrating, I made the journey last year no problem, and it would have been the same this year if it hadn't been for complications."

"Such as?"

"My younger brother was blown off course," she said bitterly. "There was a storm. I decided to go back for him, but I lost my way. Some hero I turned out to be. Anyway, in the end I had to concentrate on just finding my own way back, but that didn't exactly work out either."

"Blown off course...hmm. Your brother, what was his name?" Goth asked curiously.

"His name is Shade," Dawn said quietly. She noticed Goth abruptly tense up, did he know that Shade Silverwing was the one that had broken the law? "He was small for his age, not a strong flyer. I hope he had more luck than I did in finding the colony, but when I think of it realistically...how likely is it that a young silverwing, on his first migration, could possibly survive on his own?"

Goth was quiet for a moment, and Dawn worried that he would now blame her indirectly for starting the war, simply by being related to Shade who hadn't even meant to start anything to begin with.

"Have more faith in your brother, senorita," Goth surprised her with the warm encouragement in his voice. "If he was related to you, I'm sure he held some wit about him."

"You think so?" she replied quietly, then sighed. "He was the silverwing that looked at the sun. That's why the owls are after all bats now, but they would have just taken any excuse to start a war, they probably would have taken affront even if the elders had handed him over to them."

"Then perhaps the bats should rise up against them," Goth suggested.

"What?" she asked surprised.

"There are more of us than there are of them. If all bats were to band together, the owls would not stand a chance," he continued, placing a claw upon her shoulder. She could practically feel the power in his voice, and it was contagious. Every word so convincing that in that moment they seemed undeniably true. "In my home, we would not stand for such treatment!"

"Well then I wish I was born there instead," she exclaimed. "To be so strong, and powerful, and-and...carefree!"

Goth simply chuckled, looked ridiculously pleased with himself.

"My name is Dawn, by the way," she said shyly. "Sorry for not introducing myself sooner."

A/N: So apparently, even when I do have spare time, my updating schedule is all over the place :P

Anywho, I think I may go over the first chapter again since I feel I dove too quickly into the story without building on Dawn's personality enough first. That won't delay the release of the next chapter though, I've already nearly finished the first draft :)