Chapter- the poachers part 2
Aurora sought to the hyacinth macaw first, unlocked the cage and swung open the door. Then she helped the hyacinth macaw out of that cage too small for him.
"Oh, thank you, Ma'am," said the large navy blue bird with relief, "Glad to be out of that tiny piece of trash," he glared angrily at the small set of bars. Nearby, Zephyr and Brisa opened the cage doors to the green-winged and blue-and-gold macaws and opened those doors as well, Aurora having taught them how to operate slide bolt locks. As soon as their cage doors were opened, those macaws left their cages and were equally relieved to be out of them. Then Aurora barked at them, "Get out of here, now. There's a broken window with a hole big enough for you over there. Just be careful of the broken glass on the way out," she pointed to said window through the inferno whipped up by Milo and Celeste, "and hyacinth macaw, you take any of the non-flying prisoners with you, now GET MOVING!"
The macaws immediately obeyed and made a break for it. The green-winged and blue-and-gold macaws rocketed for the window and exited it while the hyacinth macaw seized a marmoset freed by Sirius and also exited the window. Across from the Spix macaws as they went to the next cages, Sirius, Orion and Ahsoka continued freeing more birds and other animals, Samara simply pointing them to the window for she HATED handling cages and ABSOLUTELY refused to learn to operate the lock to Sirius' chagrin. Orion freed some small bats from their cage and helped them up a wall to catch some air for most bats could not take off from the ground. Then as soon as they were high enough on the wall, the bats flew away and escaped through the window. However, as Sirius went to the next cage holding some honeycreepers and was about to put his beak to the bolt to unlock it, a white, ginger and black blur shot in and tackled into him, knocking him down. Sirius released a hiss and pounced onto the furry form, which was Katrina the calico cat who had reluctantly darted in to intervene, and began to fight her as the calico began to try and apprehend him. As he fought Katrina, Sirius barked at Orion, Ahsoka and Samara to take off and make for the exit themselves. Samara did so without hesitation but soon, she was spotted by the poachers and they began to lunge for her as well. Orion and Ahsoka gazed at Sirius as he struggled with Katrina and then reluctantly obeyed his command to flee. Orion darted to a nearby chair, scrambled up its leg and then jumped off its seat and into flight. Ahsoka followed but then she became reluctant, her fear of flying seizing her. Then she looked up and watched Orion then fly into visibility of the poachers and they began to try and catch him as well. Now FOUR of the nine rare animals, Celeste and Milo and now Samara and Orion as well, were in the storm of waving hands, paws and black comets as many of the crows and ravens tried to seize them. However, the four deftly dodged the poachers and their pets' attempts to catch them. Jack, Jill and Sunspot dove behind a sofa and hid there to watch the inferno but then Sunspot turned and saw Katrina fighting Sirius, the calico struggling to hold the male glaucous macaw down as he continued to try and lash his claws and beak at her and left to help. Then the three Spix macaws, Aurora, Zephyr and Brisa, after freeing as many of the animals as they could, then tried to escape themselves but Aurora was tackled by a black comet and pinned down on her back. She looked up and saw that her captor was a slender young raven with grey eyes and he had his talon to her throat. Rage exploding within her, Aurora hurled a glob of saliva at the raven, Charon's face and made him wince and release his talon from his neck. Then Aurora jumped up and landed a claw mark onto the young raven's face, striking him in the cheek and then took off, Charon holding his clawed cheek and cawing and weeping in pain. Then the three Spix macaws joined Celeste, Milo, Orion and Samara the inferno and began to avoid the flurry of human hands, cat and dog paws and crow and raven comets by weaving in and out of them like fish through a reef. Ahsoka and Sirius, who were left, looked on in horror, the former rooted to the spot on the chair in fear and the latter, under restraint from Sunspot and Katrina's paws.
"Orion, Zephyr, Brisa!" called the former, the ginger bat as she watched the Spix macaws and brown bat avoid Frank's hands.
"Milo, Celeste, Samara, Aurora!" cried Sirius as he writhed in Katrina and Sunspot's clutches, the Dalmatian puppy and calico teen on either side of him holding his wings top stop him from escaping. The remaining caged animals also looked on in horror at the inferno but then Samara, her rancorous rage against poachers exploding BIG time, decided to take the opportunity to maul the face of one of them. After dodging a greyhound's attempts to seize her, sending the greyhound crashing into one of the cages holding more bats to their fright, Samara lashed at the face of one of the men, Marv and as soon as she was on his face, she began to unleash her wrath full throttle by scoring her claws over it like a rabid cat. Sirius and Ahsoka as well as Jack, Jill, Sunspot, Katrina and also Charon who was clutching his clawed face from Aurora's attack on him, winced as screams of agony exploded from Marv as the SAVAGE glaucous macaw raked her claws savagely over his face. Blood poured from the claw marks carved into Marv's face and Marv covered his face, lost his balance and was sent careening into Peter as he tried to catch Milo as he shot past. His left foot accidentally stomped onto Peter's right, sending shooting pain ripping through Peter's foot and making him scream. Milo then seized the opportunity to take out his wrath on the poachers, rushed for Peter's face and landed a massive claw mark onto his cheek before fleeing. Samara continued going for Marv but because her rage blinded her to the surroundings, she was caught easily; Lysandre leapt in, seized Samara and pinned her on her back with a paw to the throat. Brutus and Dooku also appeared, managed to seize Milo and Aurora and also pin them down as well.
"Samara, Milo, Aurora!" cried Sirius when he saw this. He winced in pain from his left wing still bearing Samara's claw marks as Sunspot kept a firm grip on it, unintentionally aggravating the marks. At this, he shot an accusing glare at Katrina thinking he had clawed the glaucous macaw over his face and wing (Sirius still had Samara's claw marks on his right cheek as well) but Katrina shook her head to indicate that she had not inflicted those marks on the male glaucous macaw. Samara then struggled under Lysandre's grip but the ginger tom was NOT going to let her go.
"Stop squirmin', glaucous gold nugget," the cat crooned mockingly into her face, "Or YOU'LL be receivin' your OWN battle marks," he enforced his point by flaring the claws of his other front paw. Samara gazed at the tom timidly.
Peter, his left cheek bearing some bleeding claw marks, then shot Marv an ANGRY look and gave him a hefty shove.
"HOW DARE you STOMP ON MY FOOT you IDIOT!" he snarled. Marv, his face bleeding from Samara's attack on him, then shoved him back and before long, the two men began to fight each other rather than help Vera, Frank and the others to catch Orion, Zephyr, Celeste and Brisa who were still shooting around like rockets.
"STOP SCUFFLIN' an' HELP US CATCH THOSE (BLEEP)IN' MACAWS AND BAT BEFORE THEY ESCAPE, you two (BLEEP)IN' IMBACILES!" Frank yelled, snapping Peter and Marv out of their rage and fight and making them obey. Orion shot past and Peter tried to lash his hand at him twice to catch him but Orion dodged both times. Then Marv tried again but Orion lured him into smacking Vera in the face to her rage. After this, Orion took his opportunity in taking his turn in attacking Marv; he landed onto the poacher's arm and plunged his fangs into his left shoulder HARD. From the chair, Ahsoka winced from the scene as screams of agony exploded from Marv and his right hand flew to his left shoulder where Orion was but Orion dropped into flight and shot the poacher an unsympathetic glare.
"Take THAT, you low-down POACHER SNAKE!" snarled the male bat before he took off. He then joined Zephyr, Brisa and Celeste as they regrouped. Then the four eyed the broken window and darted off for it. Sirius in Sunspot and Katrina's grasp; Aurora in Brutus' clutches, Milo in Dooku's clutches, Ahsoka on the chair and Samara under Lysandre looked on and cried their names. However, before the two Spix macaw siblings, the female Lear's macaw and male Amazon flying fox could make it out of the broken window and to freedom with the other escaped animals, another blur, this time a MASSIVE white one, shot in and plucked all four of them out of their path like flies. Orion, Celeste, Zephyr and Brisa al released cries of shock as they were flung against the wall and then onto the floor but then they felt something crash on top of them and crush them, drawing the breath out of them. Sirius, Samara, Aurora, Milo and Ahsoka (who was seized by two ravens when they saw her just standing there on the chair) winced and Ahsoka also screamed as the hulking blob then held the four under its body bulk and begin to suffocate them but not to kill them.
This blob had white feathers and was MASSIVE, far bigger even than Brutus and the biggest dogs. From the hulking body were massive wings and a long neck like a snake. On the end of the snake was the creature's head bearing an orange and black rounded beak, a mass of long feathers cascading down the sides and back like a set of soggy vines and a pair of eyes. The left eye was damaged and nothing more than a slit with scarred claw marks running over it. More tiger stripe scars were visible on the creature's plumage, evidence that this massive bird had been in a series of brutal fights. The creature's the other eye, its right one, was functional. The eye bore a faded blue pupil and in that eye was a boiling concoction of malice, sadism and cruelty and that eye pierced Celeste, Zephyr, Brisa and Orion who were crushed under its heavy body like a boulder. The creature had legs which were black, webbed and also scarred. As the four struggled under the bulk of the massive creature, the bird, a swan, began to taunt them. Its voice sounded like the growl of a vicious rabid dog.
"Where do you four think YOU were goin', lil' gems?" the swan crooned. Orion, Zephyr, Brisa and Celeste felt their skin and nerves prickle at this voice and also from the glare of the ugly scarred face of the swan, its beak oozing saliva as it spoke. Jack and Jill looked on fearfully as the swan continued holding the four under its body.
"Whassup? Freedom snatched from your grasp by a hulkin', ugly parrot-detestin' swan like me?" the swan continued, "I'm so sorry but it's true 'cos you four AINT goin' NOWHERE..."
Orion then began to writhe but the swan opened its beak and clamped it HARD onto the flying fox's throat, making him choke. Zephyr, Celeste and Brisa, terror gripping them then uttered Orion's name, barely due to the weight of the MASSIVE swan holding them down.
"Vecna," Frank called, making the swan, a male, release Orion's neck and look at him with his single eye, "Return those three macaws and that flying fox to these cages ALIVE immediately before you even THINK of doin' ANY of them ANY harm. We want all nine of these animals ALIVE!"
Vecna, a sadistic smile on his beak, returned his malicious glare to Orion, Celeste, Brisa and Zephyr.
"Torture adjourned," he sarcastically grunted before lifting his hulking body off the four, seizing Orion in his beak, this time by the head hair, making the flying fox writhe and haul him in the direction of the cages. Celeste, Brisa and Zephyr were immediately seized by some of the cats and dogs and also hauled back to the cages. Within moments, the nine animals were thrown back into their cages one by one.
Orion was flung into one of the cages first, followed by Ahsoka with the ravens forcefully throwing the ginger flying fox in; Zephyr and Brisa were tossed into the first cage with Aurora being flung in after them by Brutus; Sirius and Samara were returned to their cage by Lysandre who returned them both together, Sunspot and Katrina looking on regretfully; and Milo was returned to his cage by Dooku and some of his crow and raven underlings with Celeste with the greyhound flinging her into there like some dog toy. As soon as things had finally calmed down in the room and the four cages were locked once again once all seven blue macaws and both flying foxes were back in them, Marv sought to a rudimentary first aid kit and began to treat his face and shoulder where Samara and Orion had attacked him, Peter with his scratched seek due to Milo's attack, wanted some of the supplies but Marv prevented him for picking a fight with him during the storm, forcing an ANGRY Peter to find his own methods of dealing with his scratched cheek. While Marv did this, Frank turned to Vecna as the massive swan waddled over.
"Well done, Vecna," said the lead poacher.
"Yes, well done, Vecna," said Marv, Peter and Vera. The dogs, cats, crows and ravens apart from Katrina, Sunspot and Charon also praised the swan while Jack and Jill looked on timidly. Then Vecna, upon seeing the twins and Katrina, Sunspot and Charon look on sadly, then lashed at them; he released a MASSIVE snake-like hiss at Jack and Jill, making them winced and then lunged at Katrina, Sunspot and Charon in a brief attack, biting Katrina on the right front paw and making the calico release a screech of pain. Sunspot and Charon also winced as Katrina then grasped her bitten paw in tears. Dooku, Brutus and Lysandre came by with a few dogs, among them a female white and black border collie, brown and black Dachshund and a white Persian cat, all of them wearing unsympathetic eyes. Then Frank nodded to Vera to pick up the chains Peter had but had dropped when the Lear's macaws initiated the storm. Vera obediently did so and handed them over to Frank. As they did that, Ahsoka glared accusingly at Orion and the macaws.
"Why didn't ANY of you bother with ME while I was on that chair, while you were flying around above those wretched poachers and their pets!?" she demanded, "In fact, why did you just leave me THERE?"
"Don't accuse US of not seein' to YOU when you can fly YOURSELF, mud-pet bat!" Samara retorted, making Ahoska flinch. Nearby her, Orion rolled his eyes, clearly irritated at Samara's constant use of the offensive word 'mud-pet' against the human-raised macaws and Ahsoka.
"Well, why didn't you just drop into flight like Orion did?" asked Aurora defensively.
"Yes, you would have followed me," put in Orion. At this, Ahsoka went silent. Once again, she was too ashamed and embarrassed to admit to the macaws and Orion that she was unable to fly. Sirius then looked on while Samara went away in a huff.
"It was pretty unusual that you didn't follow Orion, anyway," said he.
"Look, it's not important," said Ahsoka defensively, "Okay? Let's just leave it, shall we?"
Sirius opened his beak to ask why Ahsoka didn't drop into flight but then changed his mind and took Ahsoka's request. He then went over to Celeste and Milo to check on them, clearly seeing how badly shaken Celeste was from being crushed by Vecna under his massive body but before he could do that, the door to his and Celeste's cage was opened. However, the Lear's macaw and his female counterpart were immediately restrained by some of the crows and ravens. The other three cages, doors were also opened and Aurora, Zephyr, Brisa, Ahsoka, Orion, Sirius and Samara were restrained by the ravens, crows, cats and dogs including Brutus, Dooku and Lysandre as well, the restrainers holding the macaws and bats through the bars. Then what happened next came the cruellest thing Aurora, Milo, Ahsoka and Sirius had EVER come across at the hands of the humans, more so for Milo than the wicked sister of his friend and owner Audrey, Ana.
Frank then went about chaining the nine animals together, starting with the Spix macaws. He attached the first chain to the restrained Zephyr and Aurora by putting one anklet on Aurora's right leg and the other on Zephyr's left. As soon as the pair were chained, their restrainers including Dooku released them. Aurora glared at the chain in UTMOST horror as Zephyr took the snake in his beak and tried to pull it off his leg. Then Frank chained Brisa being held by the neck by the female collie to the pair via a second chain by putting one anklet onto her left leg and the other anklet onto the chain already holding Zephyr and Brisa together. This done, the collie released Brisa and Frank re-closed the door and relocked it.
"Thank you, Bryony," Frank said to the collie who took the praise and flashed a mean smile at the Spix macaws, especially as Brisa struggled with the chain and released a fierce hiss at the poachers. Then Frank went to Orion and Ahsoka and chained the bats together with another chain with one anklet attacked to Orion's right and Ahsoka's left ankle. Ahsoka gazed at the chain in despair while Orion took the chain in his teeth and tried to pull it off his foot to no avail. The two winged mammals shot Frank a CAUSTIC glare as he then shut and relocked their cage door. Next, Sirius was chained to Samara and lastly, Milo was chained to Celeste. The glaucous and Lear's macaws shot furious glares at Frank as he closed their cage doors and locked them. This done, he commanded Jack, Jill, Vera and Peter, "Take these four to the other room with the other captured animals while we see to the remaining cages. We can forget the other animals that had managed to escape as they are not as valuable as those blue macaws and the flying foxes. Just be careful as they are vicious, especially the glaucous macaws."
Then the nine chained macaws and bats were picked up in their cages by the four said humans: Jack went to pick up Aurora, Zephyr and Brisa while Jill picked up Ahsoka and Orion. Vera picked up Sirius and Samara and Peter picked up Milo and Celeste. He had his caustic eyes on the Lear's macaws, especially Milo for he was furious at him for clawing his face. Then the four humans took the four cages through a door to another room, Jack going first with the three Spix macaws.
As Zephyr, Brisa and Aurora were taken through the door, the sounds of mournful screeching, squawking and howling filled their ears and they were greeted with a nightmarish, harrowing sight. There were countless other cages filled with a variety of animals, mostly birds but there were more bats, primates and even a few reptiles like lizards were present and all of them were kept in appalling conditions. Aurora looked on tearfully as she took in how stuffed so many birds were in one cage, clearly in pain, and one or two lizards weeping and emitting mournful hisses from their cages. One cage contained a few small bats of a species Aurora could not recognise and she saw another hyacinth macaw, to her sadness, stuffed into a cage that was far too small for it. As she took in the harrowing scene, Zephyr came to her.
"See what I mean about poachers, Pigtails?" he hissed. Aurora ignored him and continued gazing at the distressed animals. She also saw what appeared to be a military macaw limping on one foot, its other foot bearing a bite mark. That appeared to be the work of Vecna and Zephyr remembered how that swan had clamped his beak onto Orion's throat a while ago. Then Aurora felt something else. It made her breathing accelerate and muscles tremble and she felt woozy. Zephyr and Brisa looked on with a little concern but they couldn't understand why she was beginning to feel like this but they weren't aware that this harrowing sight was triggering a flood of BAD memories to come crashing back over Aurora. This same effect was occurring on Sirius and Milo as they were carried with Samara by Vera and Celeste by Peter respectively and both those macaws were trembling violently, the mournful cries and screeches frightening them. Ahsoka was not as affected for she had never experienced being smuggled out of Rio in her life but she was still has horrified and in tears at how the poor animals were treated.
"They even have reptiles kept here," she told Orion as he climbed around the cage bars, the chain snaking from his right ankle to Ahsoka's left. Then the nine found themselves lowered onto the floor as their carriers put their cages down. Jack lowered the Spix macaws first and gave the three a sad look.
"Sorry, blue macaws," said he guiltily, "I have to do what I have to do. So must my sister Jill."
Zephyr, Aurora and Brisa glared at Jack as Jill then came in and lowered the cage containing Orion and Ahsoka next to them. She too apologised to them and left. Then Vera came in with Sirius and Samara and placed them on the Spix macaws' other side. Unlike the twins, she was less sympathetic.
"You two will look better when a taxidermist turns you into stuffed models," she growled. Sirius lashed at the woman, clearly stabbed by this remark and clamped his beak onto her right hand. Vera released a cry of pain and seized her bitten hand. As Sirius glared at the female poacher, Samara looked on.
"Good job in bitin' that female biped destroyer's hand, mud-pet," she hissed.
"I think that term 'mud-pet' should apply to that swan and his cronies, Samara," said Sirius. Samara turned away bitterly.
"You're as bad as THEY are," she hissed, making Sirius wince. However, he didn't retaliate with a slap this time, especially since they were now chained together. Sourly, he turned away as well, clearly sick of her bad attitude. Then next to the glaucous macaws, Peter lowered Milo and Celeste next to them. As he did, he glared at the pair, especially the male.
"I hope that chain will teach you feathered RAT about bein' vicious," the young man hissed at them, the comment aimed at Milo, before he rubbed his clawed cheek, "'Specially after clawin' my face."
"'Specially after clawin' my face! Feathered RAT'!" Milo caustically mimicked his voice to rub salt into his wound, making Peter flinch, offended by this mimicry. Celeste also giggled at his reaction. Suddenly, a foot flew in and kicked the cage, jerking the two Lear's macaws into stumbling. Milo nearly ended up with the chain around his neck. Peter who had kicked the cage in a volcanic rage at being jabbed by Milo's mimicry, then went to seize the Lear's macaws' cage to shake them violently but he was restrained by Frank.
"Do not even THINK of harming those valuable animals, Pete," he commanded, "Monsieur wants all those nine alive when we come to take them to him, you know."
Peter shot a caustic glare at the Lear's macaws and stormed out. Vera followed with Jack and Jill close behind. The twins gazed back at the nine animals on the floor and exited the room, closing the door behind them.
While Sunspot and Charon sought to treating Katrina's bitten right front leg where Vecna had bitten her earlier with a crude bandage, Jack and Jill turned to Frank.
"Are they gonna be alright, Frank?" asked the boy.
"Oh, they will, son," said Frank with assurance calling Jack 'son' despite not him being his biological child. However, this was false assurance as Frank, together with the other poachers did not care about the fates of the animals including Sirius and company. Jill then went over to Katrina and helped Sunspot and Charon to bandage the calico's bitten front paw. This done, Katrina decided to go upstairs to sleep and so she left for the stairs, limping on the go. Charon followed such that Sunspot, Jack and Jill remained. As the calico and young raven left, they heard, "Get ready for an early rise, you two."
Charon and Katrina turned and gazed at Lysandre who was speaking to them.
"We're to take those caged animals to the airport tomorrow and we will be tracking down the Spix macaw family to capture and add to those nine animals," he then eyed the young raven, "And Vecna will need every wing pairs for that job."
As he spoke, Vecna flashed the pair a one-eyed glare and went off to the living room with the other poachers' pets, his underlings. Lysandre followed, leaving Charon and Katrina to leave for the stairs which were through the main room where the scuffle occurred. Jack, Jill and Sunspot decided to join them.
"I think we'll go to bed as well," said the boy, "It's been a tiring day."
"Indeed," said his sister and with that, she released a yawn and stretched her arms. Sunspot also released a yawn.
"Aren't you three gonna come and watch an action move to unwind after all that activity?" asked Peter.
"We're not bothered Peter," replied Jack and with that, he, Jill and Sunspot left for the stairs after Charon and Katrina. However, on the way, the three heard Peter talk with Frank about the fate of the animals.
"So, what are we gonna do with them, Frank?" the young man asked.
"We'll be sellin' them either through the pet trade or to a taxidermist," replied Frank, "But the BIGGEST thing to look forward to is AL that money we're gonna reap from those animals, especially the blue macaws and the flying foxes and also that Spix macaw family..."
This disturbed the twins and Sunspot and added fuel to their already high fire of guilt, especially Sunspot who had helped Katrina to restrain Sirius. Sadly, they left for the stairs through the main room and past Frank's desk. On the way, Jack and Jill saw some dashes of colour on the floor. Immediately, they went over to them and picked them up. They were feathers with some of them being blue, some azure and some navy. They must have been shed from the Lear's, glaucous and Spix macaws during the earlier skirmish. Then Jill saw some ginger hairs on the floor and picked them up as well. This added an even greater barrel of fuel to their guilt fires and they winced. Sadly, the twins and Sunspot left for the stairs; went up them and joined Katrina and Charon in going to sleep.