Hello There! Here's another chapter! Come and get it!

Enjoy! :)

-Joyful Wild

CHAPTER 19: THE HOPE OF ESCAPE

Kalmar ran to the big creature and wept into his fur. This was his brother, the protector of Anniera! Janner closed his eyes and smiled as he made a purring sound. Kalmar backed away to look at his brother and once Janner opened his eyes Kalmar smiled as he saw the color of his eyes. They looked like an emerald green with a mix of gold. "I love you too, Janner." Kalmar said.

"We all do, Janner!" Nia said, giving him a kiss on his snout.

"And we're all very proud of you." Esben said. Janner's ears went down as he wagged his tail which made the ground vibrate. Then Murgah yelled, "NOW!" and a grabbling hook wrapped around one of Janner's spikes on his back. He quickly lifted his head as he let out another roar and lifted his wings. He turned and clawed at one of the Darkstoners that held the other end of the chain. Janner stood up swiping his claws at the Darkstoners and Fangs in front of him while his tail was swinging from side to side wiping out the monsters behind him.

"Janner, we need to get out of here!" Leeli exclaimed.

"No! We need to get Laylah!" Artham exclaimed. "Janner! Get me to that door way." Janner looked at Artham then at the door way that Artham pointed at. He swung his claws one last time before leaping in front of his family becoming a wall between the Wingfeathers and the monsters as they ran to the secret doorway. "Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?!" Artham asked himself as he felt for a stone brick that he could push open.

"What are you looking for?" Esben asked without taking his eyes off of Janner who was covering them.

"Laylah pushed a certain brick to open the door but it's getting rather hard to find it." Artham went to the wall trying to push in bricks until Sara gasped as she pushed on it.

Artham ran over to her, "Perfect!" he exclaimed. He pushed against the wall an a doorway opened up to the next room. Janner roared again and they turned around to see piles of dust and the rest of the monsters run away. Then Janner turned to them and walked over to them. "Janner, are you okay?" Kalmar asked. Janner nodded as he laid down to get some rest but then he stated to growl. "What is it?" Sara asked.

Janner growled again, staring through the doorway. Artham looked back at the doorway then back at Janner. "Janner do you smell any Darkstoners or Fangs?" He asked. Janner nodded.

"How many?" Janner sniffed the air then looked at his claws as he closed them then lifted one claw and showed it to Artham.

"One?" Janner nodded. "Then that must be Laylah."

Artham walked to the doorway then said, "You guys stay here and I'll go get her."

"Are you sure?" Sara asked.

"I'll be okay. Maybe since Janner isn't busy fighting Darkstoners and fangs you could tell him what happened while he was gone." Everyone turned to Janner who wagged his tail again and smiled.

"Alright," Esben said, "But be careful."

"I will."

Artham entered the room silently looking around his surroundings to make sure there was no one else in here. Once he was sure he whispered , " Laylah? Where are you?" Then he heard a moan coming from the hammer machine. He ran to it only to find Laylah laying on her stomach and her wings stretched out to the platforms with the hammers on top of them. She already looked like a dead animal but Artham saw her breathing and ran to her trying not cry, "Laylah? Laylah wake up! Please." His heart broke for this girl and he didn't understand how she was still alive.

"Artham?" Laylah slowly looked up and tilted her head with a confused look on her face. "You look different." Artham looked at his wings for the first time and noticed how he did look different.

"Listen I'm going to get you out of here, okay?"

"No."

"No? Don't you want to get out of here?"

"There's no point."

"What do you mean?"

"Look at me!" Laylah exclaimed trying to hold back her tears. "You might as well leave me for dead. The only thing I do is cause trouble. And their is no way you'll be able to lift these hammers off of my wings. You should just take your family and go. Just leave me here. You got what you wanted so now you don't need me anymore."

"Laylah, I'm thankful that you lead me here but I still need to do my end of the deal. I promised I'll help you get out of here and find you a home and that's what I'm going to do."

"Why don't you see it?!"

"See what?"

"No one would want me! No one would want a freak like me!?"

"Who says that you're freak?"

"Well look at me! I look like a monster with broken wings. No one would want me! So stop wasting your time and go!"

Laylah laid her head back down on the ground.

"Laylah-"

But then she growled and bared her sharp teeth until Artham walked back to the doorway. He stopped walking when he started to hear her cry but he had a plan. He went into the other room and everyone turned to him. Janner made a whining sound and his ears went down. Artham wouldn't be surprised if he heard the whole conversation. "What's wrong?" Podo asked.

"Laylah's wings are stuck underneath these giant hammers and it's going to take more than one person to get her out." Artham explained.

"Wait, Laylah has wings?" Leeli asked.

"Yes, That's why she wore that cloak because they were twisted and broken and she didn't want people to know about it." Artham answered.

"Did she say why she turned us in?" Oskar asked.

"She had work for Murgah in order to get food since she wasn't strong enough to hunt big creatures herself. But she's the one that brought me here and I told her I could help her get out and find a new home for her."

"Well let's see what we can do to get her out." Rudric said. Artham lead them to the other room and everyone gasped when they saw Laylah. Laylah lifted her heard and was surprised at how many people Artham brought with him.

"You came back?" Laylah asked.

Artham smiled, "I told you I'm going to get you out."

Laylah sighed and laid her head back down. "Laylah even if you don't find the home that you want Anniera will always be willing to take you in. Besides most of the Annerians were either Fangs or Cloven or people who wanted to be like those creatures. They'll understand."

Laylah looked up with a small spark of hope in her eyes. "But there's still the fact that I'm under these giant hammers."

"Well, that's why me, Rudric, and Esben are going to lift the hammers while Nia sets your wings off of the platforms."

Laylah looked behind Artham. She took a deep breath and nodded her head. So, the men pulled on the chain and the hammer slowly lifted up. Nia rushed to Laylah's wing and gently pulled it out as the hammer dropped. "Artham, I thought you said her wings were broken."

"They are." Artham said as walked to see what Nia was talking about.

"They look fine to me."

Laylah looked at her wing that was free and gasped. "So that wasn't a dream."

"What do you mean?" Artham asked.

"When the Darkstoners dropped the hammers on my wings a bright light filled the room and this scary figure walked up to me and touched my wings said, 'Be healed and be free.' And then I woke up only to find my wings under the hammers. So I thought that was a dream."

"Laylah," Artham said, "That was real! The figure that touched you, that was the Maker. And He told me to teach you how to fly."

Artham, Rudric, and Esben rushed to the other hammer and pulled on the chain. Once Nia got the other wing out Laylah slowly stood up and spread her wing. The stripes on her wings glowed and Laylah smiled. Then she started to giggle a bit but then grew serious and put her hand on her chest.

"What's wrong?" Artham asked.

"Wa-… was that a…laugh?" Laylah asked.

"You mean you don't know what a laugh is?" Esben asked.

"Well, I know what a laugh is but I can't remember the last time I felt so…"

"Free." Artham finished.

"Yeah." Laylah smiled again then started to laugh as she looked at her wings.

"Come on let's get out of here and start heading back to Anniera." Artham said.

"Yes please!" Esben exclaimed.

When they went to the other room Laylah gasped when she saw Janner. "That is the biggest Darkstoner I've ever seen."

"Laylah this is Janner," Leeli said.

"Uh…hello." Laylah said.

Janner tilted his head and made a grunt sound. Then he turned to two big, wooden doors with a giant beam across them. "Do you think you can get that open, Janner?" Nia asked.

Janner went to do the door and picked up the beam with his mouth and quickly dropped it on the floor but that was when everyone realized that it was going to be a tight fit for Janner if he tried to go through the doors. Artham froze when he heard a voice in his head. It sounded just like Janner's voice, "Guys I don't think I can fit through that."

"Janner, did you just speak…in my head?"

Everyone stared at Artham, "What do you mean?" Esben asked.

"Wait you can understand me?"

Artham nodded.

"What did he say?" Nia asked.

"He asked how he was going to get through the door."

Everyone looked at the doorway then at Janner, then back to the doorway.

"Maybe he has the mind of dragon." Leeli said.

I think you guys should go first. I'll try to squeeze through

"He says he wants us to go through first then he'll try to squeeze through."

Once everyone was in the hallway Janner did his best to squeeze through. His head was pretty easy but then came the shoulders, then the big wings, then finally he pulled to get his hips through but ran into the wall once he was out. But now Janner had to try get though the small hallways which made him crouch down and lower his head. "Aaawww." Kalmar said, "Is the Castle Throg to small for you."

Janner puffed air through his noise and rolled his eyes. "Don't Janner we'll get out of here soon." Oskar said. Janner sighed as they started to walk through the hallways. Well, except for Janner who was going to start growing more muscles as he crawled through Castle Throg.

Author's note:

I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I'll try to post another chapter next Saturday or Sunday. Honestly I forgot that today was Saturday. Hehe. BYEEEIIII! :)