Chapter 45: Winter Traveling.
Author's Note:
Bah! can't think good chapter title for this! X'D
anyway, hope you enjoy this new chapter!
Sorry if grammers are wonky lol
I don't own any silverwing characters except OC's
Meanwhile, after the four friends escaped the mines, the silverwings were roosting to rest for a moment, until Mercury returned from scouting.
However, Bathsheba was growing impatient as the time flies by.
"Where is that Mercury?" She growled lowly.
"Give him time," She glances over at Frieda who is roosting along Ariel, and finishes. "It's better to be safe.
Bathsheba only huffed. "I don't want your advice. Mercury can catch up." She spread her wings out.
"Follow me!" She leaps off the branch, and the colony begins to follow her. Frieda grits her teeth at the leader's impatience. She and Ariel take off from their roost to join them.
Mercury cursed himself when he spotted the silverwings out in the opening. The owls were right behind him, and the leader was putting the colony in danger!
With all his strength, he flaps his wings hard to get close to Bathsheba. Right when he is close to her, he shouts.
"Owls! Right behind me!"
Bathsheba gasped and turned to the colony. "Silverwings back in the woods!"
"No, it too fair!" Frieda shouts.
"She right!" Mercury added. "We can't make it back, it's too dangerous!" Hearing this the colony all panicked and flew around in circles. Don't know where they can hide now since the owls are coming close.
Frieda looked around in desperation to find a solution quickly until she spotted a tree close by. Getting an idea, she turned to Mercury and everyone else.
"Everyone followed me to the tree. We don't have much time!" She flies over there and with not much of a choice, the colony listens and follows her.
Bathsheba's eyes widened at this plan when she noticed the tree they were going to wasn't hollow.
"Are you out of your roosts?! That tree isn't hollow! I said back to the woods!" She tries to lead the colony back, but to her shock, not one of the silver wings follows her orders.
She wanted to fly back but when she saw the owls coming in, she quickly changed her mind and flew back with the others. Right when they roosted Frieda yelled.
"Follow what I do!" She tucked her head in and wrapped her wings around her body, making herself a leaf, blending with the tree. The colony follows the instructions. After they had all done that, they froze when they heard the owls hooting and flying above the tree they were on.
But they held their breath when they heard one of them swopped down and they did not dare to make any sounds. Soon the flapping of the wings slowly faded away until it was all silenced.
After everything was quiet, Frieda was the first to peek her head to see everything clear. To her relief, the owls were gone. Ariel followed as she perked her head out from her wings.
"All clear!" Mercury announced and the silverwings unwrap their wings.
"Thank you, Frieda," Ariel sighed. "Your idea saved us," The elder bat gives her a soft nod. Soon Bathsheba flew over to them and huffed.
"Well, I should thank you for your genius idea, now everyone follows me!" She took off but to her shock, no one left their roost. Even more when she noticed some of them were glaring at her.
Bathsheba blinked. "What? I said follow me!"
"We don't want to follow you anymore," One of the silverwing stated. "You have caused nothing but put us in danger."
The fat elder silverwing couldn't believe what she was hearing and snarled. "How dare you!.."
"Now we want to follow Frieda," Isis interrupted. Chinook gasped to hear this from his mother and looked over at her.
"I won't risk losing my son under your order." He looked at his mom proudly during her speech and smirked at Bathsheba, knowing she was toast.
"So, the colony has spoken," Ariel said and looked over at Frieda with a smile. "Frieda will now take the lead," The elder bat gives her a soft nod and spreads her wings. Once she soared out of her roost the colony began to follow her.
Bathsheba watches them being led away before she begins to trail behind having a grouch look on her face.
Ashlie's POV
While flying through the woods we were still laughing about Shade tricking on Goth.
"That was so rich on that plan," I laughed. "I can't believe you made it believable to him." Shade gave me his proud look and we all landed on a nearby branch to rest and catch our breath to steady myself.
"And did you get a load of that face?" Marina added, grinning. "Oh, and those cheeks!" She laughed more. "Cool"
I slid off Orestes back while Shade calmed his laugh.
"Zotz? The demon bat at the center of the earth?"
"Well, you better not run into real zotz," Marina replied, quieting her laugh.
"As if," I added giggling. Then we heard Orestes clear his throat.
"Um guys? The three of us look over at him and we notice his nervous look.
He swallowed. "I think we should be more concerned with the em. " We followed his gaze, and we were horrified. Above us, we saw the owl soldiers making a triangular shape starting the war, led by Brutus himself.
"We all hid in the shadow as my bat friends roosted and we waited until the owls passed above us. I thank God, they didn't catch us.
After they were gone Orestes let out a long sigh.
"There's my father gathering the troops." He glared at where they were going and closed his eyes, looking ashamed. "This war is wrong,"
"I thought I would never hear those words coming from the beak of an owl." Shade said crossing his arms.
"Yeah, me neither," Orestes replied sadly. We all looked at one another as if we had the same thoughts.
"The hibernaculum is no longer safe." Shade spoke softly. My heart heaved from hearing these words coming from him. On how his colony is in grave danger and his mother is the only family he ever has.
My nightmare was slowly coming to reality. But I don't know which is worse, them getting eaten by giant bats or killed under Brutus's cruel justice.
"Come on," I overheard Marina whisper. "If we get there soon, we'll warn them before they reach there. With that, I climbed on Orestes back and we all soared out from our rest stop and made our way towards hibernaculum.
Many of us were silenced as we journeyed on, and I was shivering from the cold. I glanced down at my hand and sure enough, my fingers were slowly getting frostbite.
I breathed as I took my mitten off and put it on my left to get it warmed up. But it won't matter anyway, since I don't know how long I'll survive in this freezing environment. Then a thought about my family came to me and my heart dropped.
If they found out I died out here, they'd be devastated. I shut my eyes and bury my face in Orestes's mane, doing my best to keep myself warm.
"Ash?" I peeked my head up and saw the owl look at me in concern as he felt me move a bit. "You're, okay?"
I force myself to make a smile. "Yeah, just trying to stay warm and having thoughts,"
"Thoughts?" he added. "Like what?" Hearing this question, I looked down sadly and watched snow pass by.
"My family," I replied softly.
"Oh," Orestes looked at me softly. "S-sorry I asked." I only nodded but then heard him say this.
"Hey, when you get back to your family, you can tell them this crazy adventure you had. I bet they'll be surprised."
I almost chuckled softly, seeing he was trying to make me feel better. "They would if they believed it." Then Shade flew over as he heard our conservation. He even notices my worrisome facial.
He sighed. "It will all be okay, I promise once we reach my hibernaculum we'll get you home."
I glanced at him and felt the urge to ask many worry questions, but his reassuring look made me suddenly forget them.
Instead, I ask him this question. "... Are you sure?"
He smiles softly. "Positive. Don't lose any hope,"
"As long as you don't lose yours," I replied with the same expression. Shade chuckled softly and flew ahead to lead us. I kept watching him, never realizing that throughout my journey, Shade might be my guardian angel.
He's been with me through ever since I freed him. And he never once backed me down no matter how much we argued. He's..just a friend that everyone needed, and he doesn't realize that.
I sighed and planted my face in Oreste's man once again to stay warm.
Third's Person POV
Meanwhile, out in the forest, Ursa and the other animals were climbing up the mountains through the blizzard they were caught in. Along the way half the others decide to join as they had enough of wolves killing them off.
All the animals struggle to keep up with Ursa as Sam and Jacques both shiver uncontrollably while riding on the leader's back.
"W-w-why we have to go through t-t-this mountain?" Sam chattered.
"Ursa s-s-says its t-the only way goes t-through," Jacques replied while hugging his guitar close with his wings. Sam huffed and used his tail to try to keep himself warm with Bonus having his face in it.
"I should've listened to my mama of hibernating in a tree hollow," Sam muttered to himself. "But I don't want to due to my claustrophobia of teeny-weeny space..." He stops dead when all of a sudden, they hear a rumbling sound coming from above.
"Sam?" Jacques gulped. "Please tell me that was your stomach making that noise," Sam shook his head nervously Ursa looked up sharply and gasped and screamed.
"AVALANCE!" All the animals while Sam and Jacques held on to Ursa's fur, ran to the nearby cave screaming. Luckily all of them made it safely right before the avalanche came crashing down, covering the cave entrance.
The animals were panted heavily as Sam had his eyes shut.
"A-are we still alive?" He wimped. Jacques put his wings on his shoulder which made the squirrel open his eyes.
"Yes, we are partners," Sam sighed in relief and climbed down while Jacques flew off.
"But we could've been... killed," The raccoon gulped. When Ursa sees the avalanche is done, she turns to others.
"You be safer here," She spoke and began to leave.
"Wait where are you going?" Raccoon asked.
The bear looks back at them with determination. "To help Shade Silverwing stop this war. "She sighed. "Before we have another great battle on our paws." With that, they watch their leader walk back out and disappear in the blizzard.
All the animals were silent and shivering for a moment. That is until Sam let out a huff.
"Well, I'm not going sit here and freeze my tail off." He starts to walk towards the exit.
"But Ursa told us to wait here," The rabbit said. Sam spun around and asked with a smirk.
"Does she say that in order?" He tested and watched the rabbit shake its head unsure and the squirrel looked at other animals.
"Well, I'm free to go out there and help her kick some wolves' tail." He made a fist and punched in the air. "It's time for us to show these no-good wolves their messing with the wrong forest animals and restore our freedom! Who's with me?" Sam grins and raises his fist in triumph.
He waited for any volunteer but all he got was the animals looking at him like he said something suicidal.
"...Anyone?" He lowers his fist down when he notices no one is raising their paws. He sighed but then Jacques flew over and landed by him.
"I'm with you buddy," He volunteered.
"You would?" Sam gasped.
The robin laughed. "Remember the code we made? Never sing alone. Also." He added. "Friends always stick together no matter what," That made Sam teared up so that he can't help to glomp him into a hug.
"Aw Jacques!" He cried.
"S-Sam you're crushing my guitar!" Jacques squeaked. He quickly let his friend go and wiped his tears off.
"Oh, sorry pal." He sniffed. Then they both look out and look at each other.
"Ready?" Sam asked.
"Lead the way," Jacques answered. Both of them make their way out and ignore other animals protesting.
"You can't go out there!" Raccoon cried.
"You two are going get killed!" Rabbit added. Right when two of them stepped out the mice called out.
"Alright, it's your funeral!" It squeaked. "And can I have a guitar if you die out there?" Jacques lifted, took Sam's paws, and began to make their way down to join Ursa.