Searching For Answers And An Awkward Salsa Night
I don't really need to explain the title here do I? On one side of the chapter, RDJ will be travelling to the beach hut where Fred told him to go in search for answers on the book he retrieved in Belarus. Then on the other side, a very awkward Lila will be watching birds do the salsa in a club alone with a bird she only just met, without anyone there that she knows! But not only that, we find out about a new enemy in this story! But…is it a new enemy? Or an old one who hasn't been mentioned in years? Not that we wasn't expecting birds to be keeping eyes on him! So without further ado, let's get right to it!
The dearly loved country of Mexico, was drifting into the early evening! You could clearly tell this by looking at the sky. As the golden sun had turned into a faded orange, as it made its descent. Saying farewell to a very…interesting day to say the least!
Our assassin feathery friend, was flying above the buildings in the city. Keeping his hood right up so he wouldn't be spotted by the locals in the city. Who knows when the remainders will attack again, so he had to be on his constant toes to look out for any potential threats.
"Remainders…hmmmm…" RDJ was in deep thought about the men who attacked him. But something didn't quite make sense to him about the sudden ambush. Why was it that they were willing to take him and the staff to their leader. Knowing full well that if any of the others even attempted to touch the staff, they would be killed in the most painful of ways. What exactly would their leader do with a staff that he or she couldn't even touch without dying? "None of this makes any sense? I need to know where to find these keys!"
RDJ slowly looked beneath where he was flying, and he noticed that he was now right above the sandy shores of Cancun beach. The only problem was…where the hell was the beach hut supposed to be?
"Come on? It must be around here somewhere?"
Let's Check In To See How Lila Is Doing…
Lila felt really awkward about being escorted into a club with someone who she didn't even know. Let alone meet on the very same day.
Normally she would object to this kind of offer, because the blue female would feel more comfortable being with someone she knew. Like her best friend Jacqueline, her husband RDJ, or even with her two children. But of course…she didn't want to be impolite and reject the offer. Especially since Fred was her brother in law.
"Here we are Lila! Quite the place right?" The blue and gold male spoke with pride as they entered what looked like the main hall of the club.
The purple eyed female gazed at the many couples who already hit the dance floor. Many of them were perfectly dancing to the rhythm of the music. Others however just stood next to each other and shuffled on the spot because they didn't know what they were doing.
"Hmmm, those guys over there are dancing like Blu? Mumbler shufflers they are?" Lila spoke with a weird glance, as the song carried on booming from the speakers in the background.
"Who's Blu?" Fred asked in curiosity, as he kept looking at the bar.
"He's one of my close friends back home! Do you mind if we just sit and have a drink first? I don't really feel like hitting the dance floor straight away?" Lila spoke awkwardly, as she scratched her left wing. "I don't know if I can do this."
"Of course! This is a night for you to let loose and have fun! When was the last time you ever had fun?" He beamed with a bright smile as he looked at her with an enthusiastic look.
"Can we not talk about that please? It's bad enough that my husband wasn't allowed in with us!" Lila answered sadly, while frowning at him. "I would have preferred it if he was here with me."
"Sure! But ummmm…don't forget Lila…he did have the choice to spend the evening with us? We didn't have to come here if all three of us weren't allowed in? Instead he chose to do his…assassin thing? I mean I only just met you guys…but that does seem a bit selfish don't you think?" Fred answered with that same smile he had. Before he began walking towards the bar to order a couple of drinks.
The blue female did have a little think about what he was saying. A part of her believes that RDJ only agreed not to go in so that she could have a fun night. But then…a bigger part of her actually agreed with what Fred was saying. And she instantly felt a bit of anger hit her chest again.
"Yeah…I guess it is a little bit selfish?" Lila thought to herself, before narrowing her eyes towards the exit. Then she turned back around to face her brother in law. "Fuck it! I'm gonna try and enjoy my evening, before having a little talk with RDJ later!" The blue female decided with that same annoyed look, before joining Fred at the bar to join him for a drink.
Now Let's Head Back To RDJ…
"Where the bloody hell is this hut?! I've circled the beach like…seven times already!" RDJ began to feel very frustrated that he couldn't find where he was going. Then he felt out of breath after all the flying. So he decided he needed to rest for a moment to gain his energy back. "Fuck! It's a good thing I'm still in shape!" He remarked in relief, as he lowered himself to the shore. But perched himself on top of what looked like a beach umbrella. Then sat down a moment to relax and breathe. "Cough! Cough! Cough! Ahhhh…how long can I keep this up?"
"Sniff! Sniff!"
"Huh?" The blue and gold male heard a faint sound coming from underneath the umbrella, and he wanted to take a closer look to find out who was making that noise. So he carefully placed both wings on the edge of the umbrella, and peered his head over the edge. Only to see the one individual that he wasn't expecting to see. The teenage scarlet macaw that had attacked his wife on the beach earlier in the day. "Is that…that's him! The kid from the beach?" RDJ thought to himself quietly, as he continued to gaze at him.
"Sniff! Sniff! I sh-sh-shouldn't have done that to him! To his wife either! I just…got so angry! And now I lost all my friends!" The scarlet macaw male cried sadly, as he buried his face in his wings.
RDJ did feel a little bit guilty for what happened earlier on, but he did kind of deserve it after the way he and Lila were treated. But…does that mean that he wanted him to live life alone like he did for several years? Of course not! So he decided to give him some comfort.
"Hey…ummm, kid? Why are you crying?" RDJ asked the scarlet teen, as he looked down from on top of the umbrella. And landed on a sun bed, that the teen was sitting on.
"Oh no! It's you!" He cowered away in fear while moving to the back of the sun bed. "Please! You already made your point sir! I don't want any trouble!"
"No no kid, listen! I just…I just wanna talk?"
"Talk? About what?"
"About those guys that were with you back there? Why did they just leave you like that?" RDJ asked in a calm and comforting manner, as he sat opposite of him.
"Because they thought that what I did was so uncool! They kicked me out of their group, and the hollow where I was staying as well! Now I had to move into my aunts stupid beach hut!"
"Hold on a second…does your aunt…know anything about books? Like…ancient literature?" RDJ asked in a serious manner, as he arched a curious eyebrow. Completely cutting away from the current conversation by changing the subject.
"Are you kidding? It's all she ever talks about! Why do you know this?" The scarlet male replied, getting more intrigued about where this stranger to him was going with this.
"What's your name kid?" RDJ asked while smiling at him in a friendly manner.
"Raul…and you?"
The blue and gold male didn't want to give him his real name, because he wanted to remain anonymous to the locals to avoid dragging them into his assassin business. "My name is Emilio. I have a friend named Raul back home. He's a doctor."
"Wow, so he must have his wings full?"
"Indeed he does. Listen Raul, if you take me to your aunt so I can show her the book I found, I can help you get your life back on track?" RDJ beamed with a bright smile while extending his wing to pull him up.
"How do you propose to do that?" Raul pondered with curiosity in his eyes, as he got pulled back up onto his talons.
"That girl that you were upset about losing? I may know a few tricks on how to get her to like you?" RDJ narrowed his eyes in a mindful manner.
"So this is the deal then. I take you to my aunt, you help me get my girl crush to like me? Yeah, okay! Let's do it!" The scarlet teen beamed with a bright smile as he motioned with his wing for RDJ to follow him. "Oh and by the way, she isn't really my aunt. My parents died when I was only young, so she's been raising me. But I didn't think it was right to call her mom. So I just called her aunt!"
"I'm sorry to hear that kid...If it's any consolation…my parents were murdered when I was only 15!"
"Shit…well…let's get to the beach hut before either of us start thinking about it!" Raul spoke with a saddened look. Then the duo nodded at each other and flapped their wings. So now that our assassin could finally get the answers that he was looking for.
We Head Back To Lila Now…
The music was very loud and made all the birds go crazy in the salsa club. There wasn't one single individual out there who looked like they weren't having the best of times. Not wanting this night to ever end.
Because Fred was good friends with the owner of the club, he managed to get a vip room on the top balcony of the club. He also ordered complimentary wine and beers to the room. Depending on who he was bringing up there.
The blue and gold male was having a great time watching the dancing and even swayed to the music with a glass of wine in his wing.
Lila on the other wing, she was in deep thought about what Fred said back there. And she wasn't too sure on wether she was overreacting or not to the fact that RDJ wanted to have a head start on work. The very same day he agreed to spend a magical day with her. She was of course a little upset by it. But on a different level she thought it was kind of sweet that he was thinking of her desire to dance the night away. Even if it wasn't with him.
Fred turned around to look at the blue female, and his facial expression changed when seeing how uncomfortable she was.
"What's wrong Lila? You think it's too loud? I could ask the band to tone it down a little?" Fred spoke up as he noticed that she looked like she didn't want to be there.
"Oh no, the music is fine Fred! It's just…I'm wondering if I'm overreacting about RDJ not coming to the club with us? He did look like he wanted to come." She lowered her head in a thoughtful look, swirling around her glass of wine. "Maybe I am being a little too hard on him…He is under a lot of stress at the moment."
"Hey? I'm sure that he did want to come in with us. But, we didn't have to come here if all three of us couldn't come in? He was the one who suggested about you coming here with me." Fred pointed out the obvious, as he poured both of them another glass of wine.
"I know that. But…I think that I am overreacting. I came here with him so that part of our trip would involve working on our marriage! He's done a pretty good job so far. So I can't be mad at him for this."
"That's a fair point! You do know though that if I wanted to work on my marriage, I would have made plans to spend time with my wife. Even if it didn't involve dancing in a club!" Fred replied while giving her a very questionable look. Why was it that he was talking about his brother like this? He barely even knows him!
"I know but…" Lila was trying to find a response to back her husband up…but Fred immediately cut her off.
"But nothing Lila! I'm sorry…I know that this may seem a bit rude me talking about my brother in such ways. It's only because…my wife…she died many years ago. She died far too early…so I never really got to spend enough time with her."
"Oh…Fred…I am so sorry to hear that! That's terrible what happened." She placed a comforting wing on his wing to calm him down. But as she did so…he began to flex his bicep. Which felt quite muscular. Which caused her to widen her eyes a little. "How old did you say you were again?"
"I didn't, but if you must know how old I am. I'm 44 to be precise! But I manage to…keep myself in shape!"
"44?! Bloody hell! Don't your species die at that age?!" Lila widened her eyes even more, completely stunned by his how old he was.
"No haha! Mine and RDJ's species can survive up to 50. But it just depends on how well you look after yourself. I can imagine that RDJ has done a good job?" Fred replied with s warm grin, as he turned away from the hand to focus on his conversation with Lila.
"Not really? To be quite frank, he was in a coma for 8 months. So he's not as strong as what he used to be, I'll tell ya that!" Lila smirked slightly, relaxing on the back of her chair.
"So he's gotten weaker? Jeez…no wonder your marriage is going down hill!" The blue and gold male replied before turning away from her. But boy…that wasn't the right thing to say to her.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Lila got a little offended by this remark, and put her glass down on the table while crossing her wings. "Are you saying that because he is weaker, that it makes the marriage weaker?!"
"No! That's not what I meant!" He replied in fear, raising both his wings up in defence. "I just kind of meant it in a way that he…might not be…" He tried to find the right words to say here. But nothing was coming to his mind. So he had to only say one thing! "Might not be performing well? You know…sexually?"
"WHAT?!" The blue female felt even more offended now, and stood up from her seat and threw the glass of wine in his face. "How fucking dare you! My husband may be weaker in terms of energy! But he is the best sex that I have ever had! And trust me…he knows how to pleasure every…single…acre of me! Good night Fred! I'm going to find my husband!" Lila stormed off in a really outraged mood after her really uncomfortable conversation with Fred. Leaving him drenched in wine. As he just sat there with a thoughtful look on his face.
"Shit! I just had to say something stupid didn't I? Fuck! Now I've really fucked this up!" Fred shook his body to dry his feathers. Then grabbed a tea towel before leaving the vip room. Heading back down to the bar to try and shake off what just happened.
Time To Check Back In On RDJ…
"Come on! We just have to get past those cliffs here!" Raul called out from the front of the assassin. Who was trailing behind slowly due to his older age.
"Just…haaa…wait for…ahhhh…me! I'm not as young as you are kid!" RDJ wheezed in a tired manner, as he clapped his sore wings vigorously, to catch up to the younger macaw. "Gosh, I would give anything to be 18 again!"
"If only I was a wizard?" Raul joked with a slight chuckle, causing the assassin to smirk.
"I am more like the wizard here! I'm like Merlin!"
"Merlin?" Raul stopped and hovered in mid-air. Completely not getting the reference of RDJ's words.
"You know? The Sword In The Stone?"
"The Sword In The what now?"
"Ughhh, never mind! Look, how far do we have to go?" He asked in annoyance as he couldn't wait to find the beach hut.
"Just down there Emilio! Follow me!" Raul still called him by his fake cover name, and landed just outside of what looked like the abandoned beach hut that Fred was talking about.
The assassin landed on the ground safely, but shook his talons a couple of times in frustration, because of the fact he was walking on sand.
"Are you not going to come in with me?" RDJ pondered as he walked straight past him. But he just shook his head from side to side as a no. "Why not?"
"My aunt can be a little bit…mad shall we say? Being in the same room as her is like being drunk on a night out and you're slurring your words!"
"Well…I tell you what? After I've finished up here! I'll teach you a few of my tricks to whoo the girl you are crushing on! Sound good?"
"Yep! I'll see you in a bit! I'm just going to wait here and look at the stars!" Raul remarked before laying down on the sand. Gazing up at the evening sky with eyes full of amazement and wonder.
RDJ shook his head a couple of times, did a 180 turn, then pulled aside the curtains that were covering the entrance to the beach hut. Hoping that whoever was inside, they could answer all of his much needed to know about questions.
Let's Check Back In On Lila…
"Fucking asshole! Who does he think he is?! Talking to me like that about my husband?" Lila couldn't really believe what had happened in there. She just couldn't get over what he just said about the man she loves. Normally if he insulted the way he was keeping secrets from her, that would be fine for her. But for him to talk about something only herself and RDJ would talk about. Something that personal…that's just crossing a huge line. "Now where the bloody hell is this beach hut?!"
She knew that it would have to be located on the beach somewhere, as it was rather obvious. So without even a second of thinking. She clapped her wings together, then leapt into the sky while flapping her wings very quickly.
Just to get as far away from the most awkward moment she's had in a while.
Not even realising that she was being watched…but not just by one individual. A few of them to be precise!
All of them were wearing hoods to cover themselves up, making sure they wouldn't be recognised. But the strangest thing about them was…with the remainders, they all carried the same weapons!
But as for these individuals…they all had their own separate weapons.
"Shit! I bet that's her!" One of the birds spoke up, pointing their wing towards the blue female.
"Are you sure?" Another one who was taller than them spoke up. Just making sure that it was the truth.
"How many blue macaws do you see in Mexico nowadays doofus?! Now come on! Let's see if she will lead us to our target!" They replied in annoyance, slapping them on the back of the head.
Then without any of the others making a single sound, they all followed Lila in pursuit!
Finally, We Will Go Back To The Assassin…
"Ummmm…hello?" RDJ called out in a soft and friendly voice as he entered the old abandoned beach hut. Trying not to spook anyone that may have been inside. "Hello?"
He called out a second time, as he strolled inside. When he took a little look around, he noticed that the hut was filled with broken surf boards, chairs, even some floatation equipment that would be used by humans in the sea.
"Huh…not exactly the cleanest of places?" The blue and gold macaw male remarked as he started rummaging through some of the equipment to see if there was anything I'd use to him. "Hmm, I guess nobody would want to use any of this stuff in this shithole?"
"This shithole, would be my home boy!"
"Fuck!" RDJ cursed out loud in a shocked manner, as he placed a wing on his heart. As he heard what sounded like a deep female voice in the far corner of the hut. "I'm sorry! I…I didn't mean to offend…"
"Why have you come here…" That same dark and mysterious female voice was heard from the dark corner of the hut.
Instead of RDJ showing any signs of fear…he took a deep breath and stood up tall. Before narrowing his eyes towards where the voice emerged from.
"I came…to get answers…" RDJ replied in a deep tone, as he lowered his head a little to hide his face from the figure.
"Answers huh? You're not from around here are you?"
"No…but I don't want to give a family history!" He answered back in the same deep tone. Continuing not to show any sign of weakness. "I just want you to read what's in an old book, so I can be on my way!"
"An old book?" Suddenly, out from the shadows…an elderly scarlet macaw emerged. But they walked incredibly slowly due to her older age.
A unique thing about the female, was the fact that she was missing her left eye. And her beak looked like it was reconstructed in a surgery. "Are you sure that's the real reason why you are here?"
"Should it be?" RDJ asked, trying not to look at her missing eye, which wasn't even covered up with a bandage or anything.
"You have the nerve to barge into my home uninvited! Then you have this request about me reading an old book to you?! Aren't you a little old for stories?"
"I don't have time for this! Can you help me out or not?!" RDJ grew impatient while pulling the book out of his bag. Then showed the pages to her as he flicked through them slowly. "Do any of these pages mean anything to you?"
The elderly scarlet female took the book out of his wings and flicked through the pages herself. But due to her older age, she had a hard time making out the writing and patterns that were contained on the several pages.
"I'm sorry, but I can't seem to read any of these pages! I'm not as young as I once was!" She apologised in a saddened tone, before giving the book back to him. "I could give it to my apprentice? She has been learning my ways for a while now!"
"Great! And how long will that take?! I haven't got all day you know!" The blue and gold male began to feel really impatient with her, and crossed his wings to show his irritation.
"Why are you in such a hurry? You seem eager?" The female cocked her head to the side in curiosity.
"Because I want to find answers about the Great War Of Rio!" RDJ finally gave up what he was really looking for, and pulled his hood down to reveal his face. But as soon as he did so, the female immediately gasped in shock.
"Huaaaa…it's…is it…is it really you?! Am I imagining this?!" The female was in complete bewilderment, gazing into his eyes with so much warmth. "Ahhhh…I thought I'd see you again some day…Leandro…"
RDJ instantly widened his eyes in shock himself, and took a couple of steps towards her. As he felt his heart racing, and his palms started to shake.
"What, my name is RDJ! How do you know my father?!"
"Your father?! You're his son?!"
"Yes! That doesn't answer my question! How do you know my father's name?!" RDJ asked again, gazing into her soul with a demanding gaze.
The female sadly sighed in response and walked away from him, before pressing a wing up against the wall. Holding her head in agony, like she was remembering something she didn't want to remember. "So…you really are him? An assassin? Just like your father?"
"Yes…did you…know him?"
"Know him? Haaa, that's one way to put it I guess?"
"Were you also an assassin?" The blue and gold male asked, as he slowly approached the elderly macaw.
"Ummm…yeah? Yeah I was! But…that's not exactly how I got to know him…" For some reason, she felt really upset talking about his. But RDJ didn't really read too much into it. "Several years ago, Leandro came here. Just like you…trying to figure himself out…"
"What…was…he doing here?!" He asked a little more impatiently, as he paced up and down on the spot.
But just before the elderly scarlet macaw replied, she gazed over the blue and gold male's shoulder, and noticed that someone else was standing in the beach hut behind him. So instead of giving him a straight answer…she narrowed her eyes evilly and smirked at the assassin. "You'll see…soon enough…"
"What are you talk…MMMMMM!" Suddenly, that particular individual placed a cloth of some kind over the blue and gold male's beak. And he gagged and coughed while trying to get out of the right grip that he was in.
But after a few seconds of struggling, he immediately passed out. Which could only mean that he was drugged by the use of chloroform. As he dropped to the floor unconscious after the bird let go of him.
The bird that drugged him was a fairly tall macaw, wearing what looked like a dark black cloak. But the most unique thing about his appearance, was the black helmet that he wore on top of his head.
Which could only mean one thing…
"Did he bring it with him?" The bird asked in a dark muffled voice, as he searched for the item that he was looking for. Only to see that it wasn't there. "Shit! Where's the staff?!"
"How should I know? He didn't come in here with it?" The elderly scarlet female replied while shrugging her shoulders.
The bird angrily growled before punching the wall of the beach hut, before picking up the bow and arrows. As well as the book that he took from Minsk. "Oh well…time to see how deadly this assassin really is!"
"Hold on…you're not thinking about taking him to the pit are you?"
"Of course I am! The head of the assassins taking on the undefeated challengers? Now this is a fight that everyone would give good resources to watch!" The bird cackled in a deep voice, as he gave the bow and arrows and book to the older female. "I want you to keep these here! If he survives the battle, then I want you to give these back to him, and pretend that this moment never happened!"
"What if he dies?" The scarlet female responded while raising a curious eyebrow.
"If he dies, then we find the keys ourselves! Then we find out where he stashed the staff! Now quickly…before either one of us is spotted!" The bird revealed in an annoyed tone, as he picked up the male macaw in his talons and flew out of the beach hut. Leaving the scarlet female to do her job by hiding the equipment.
Meanwhile…
Just as RDJ's unconscious body was being carried away…that very same bird who was following him noticed what was going on. And they instantly felt like they needed to help him!
"Okay…this is what I was trained for!" The female voice spoke in a soft manner, before making sure that the hood was fully covering her face. "Don't worry mentor! Birds of the world…always stick together!"
Okay, so you may be kind of confused as to what this chapter was really about! But…as I mentioned previously, this story will have a lot more bombshells and surprises more than any story that I have written! So as we know, RDJ was trying to get a head start on finding information about the keys, Lila got into a bit of a creepy conversation with Fred, which lead to her storming out of the club. While Fred sat there sadly thinking about what he said. But why was he talking bad things about his brother? Who were these figures following Lila?! How does this older scarlet female know Leandro?! Who was the new enemy in the black helmet! And who was the macaw following RDJ?! So many questions! So many answers! Want to know some of them? Stick around for chapter 6! See you soon!