by Shelly Pratt
He flew down and landed with his claws clacking on the hard concrete floor and immediately started to peck at the first window he came to. A scared looking face peered back at him, but it was not Aiyana’s. Undeterred he continued on, pecking away – tap, tapping his beak on each and every glass, but the response was the same as the last. As he neared the end of the row, he had begun to think that perhaps he had made a mistake. Perhaps she wasn’t here after all.
Just as he was about to give up and go and look for another entry into the bunker, the window second from the end rewarded him for his efforts. As his beak tapped the glass, Aiyana – beautiful Aiyana stood on tippy toes and clung onto the bars for dear life, as if trying to pull them out of the wall herself. The relief on her face when she saw it was him made his heart sing and he got instant goose bumps under his feathers.
Having found her, he morphed into his human form, his wings the last part of his raven self to disappear. He mouthed for her to step back in the cell before landing a shattering blow with his shoulder to the glass. It broke into tiny pieces and he cleared the rest away with his hands. From the other side of the cell, Aiyana had never been so pleased to see anyone in her life.
****
After the cleaner had been, she resorted to lying on the cot in the room, racking her brain to see if she could come up with an escape plan. The only answer she kept getting was a big fat no. No way out; no way in. No key, no how. Which left her with the option to wait it out and see if another opportunity would present itself or not. Try as she might, she just could not fall asleep. They had finally brought her some water and a sandwich, but it did little to satiate her thirst. After the drugs they had given her she felt like she could have drunk a whole river.
So there she was trying to get to sleep on the cot when she had started to hear the other prisoners mumbling and talking. Clearly after all the deathly silence earlier in the day, something was definitely going down. Over their ever increasing din she started to hear a tapping at the windows and it was getting closer to hers. She didn’t want to get her hopes up, but she started to get a little thrill through her and thought maybe, just maybe she would be busting out of here.
She stood on tip toes and tried to see out the window, but she wasn’t quite tall enough. She stretched her arms up as far as they would go and grasped onto the cold metal bars with her hands, pulling her body up as she did so. She almost jumped with fright as the massive black beak tapped the window, but she got it under control the minute she realised it was Eilam.
Sweet Eilam had come for her after all.
She smiled gratefully and watched him morph into his human form, relief etched all over his beautiful face. He motioned her to move back in her cell and she jumped down immediately, knowing that they wouldn’t have much time to get out of there. The minute that thought entered her mind a deafening siren started to wail, clearly indicating that the facility was on lockdown. She watched from below as Eilam braced his feet against the concrete wall and placed his hands on the bars, and then he tugged as hard as he could.
The metal did nothing at first, but the more pressure he applied, slowly did the frame work move. His biceps and pectorals flexed as he pulled harder and there was a whining sound as the metal stretched. With a last ditch effort he yanked the metal frame clear out of the window frame and tossed it to the side like it were made of cardboard.
Aiyana rushed back to the window, careful not to cut herself on any remaining shards of glass and stretched her arms up to Eilam. He grabbed her forcefully and pulled her up to where he was standing, his eyes never leaving hers for a second. He had her back, but the game wasn’t over yet.
“We have to hurry, are you okay to fly with me?” he asked a little breathlessly.
“Yes,” she nodded and stood still while she waited for him to morph back into the raven she knew so well.
His wings flapped sending her hair in all directions, but her state of undress was the least of her concerns right now. She allowed him to pick her up around the tops of her arms with his claws and then they lifted off from the concrete bunker to make their escape.
She looked up in the sky and saw many more ravens circling the island, keeping their beady eyes on the task at hand and waiting for their leader to join them in the flight home. Seeing that Eilam had what they came for, they turned their flight path towards the shore line and made way to travel over the section of sea called Giants Causeway.
Eilam followed up the rear with Aiyana, feeling like a hero to whom the victor comes the spoils. Aiyana was chilled in the wind of the night air and her teeth chattered mercilessly. Eilam must have heard her for he lifted her closer to his body and snuggled her tightly next to his feathers. The feeling of flying brought a joy to her heart and her eyes shined from the sting of the salt air.
Just when she thought they were home and hosed an angry cry of a raven rang out behind them. Eilam realised all too late that his father’s rival flock had been tracking their every move. Every single raven that belonged to his flock was on his tail and they had a blood lust like no other. This kill would ensure their survival, and they weren’t about to let him get away from them.
Eilam flapped his wings for all he was worth, desperate to make for the shore so he could off load Aiyana in order to give him the freedom to fight a fair fight. While she was on board he stood no chance at all. The first thing he did was let out an ear piercing cry which alerted his flock that he was in danger and they reacted swiftly and altered their course back towards him. The second thing he did was lower his altitude drastically because he wasn’t about to leave it to chance that he potentially could drop Aiyana from a great height. He could feel the feathers on the back of his neck ruffle and he knew then that they were in great danger. So close to making it – yet so far; if he died now then everything he’d worked towards finding a better existence for their world would have been in vain, because unless Aiyana ended his life, the ravens would still darken the skies.
He flew so fast that he could see the headland looming closer by the second. When he optimistically thought he would make it he felt the first tear of claws sink into his back. They scraped through his feathers and through to his flesh, leaving a gaping hole as they did so. He squawked in agony but kept flying onwards.
The onslaught didn’t stop there though; they weren’t giving up until he was finished. One after the other they dove on top of him using their talons to cut him to ribbons, his feathers matting together from the blood in the process. The one to finally land the finishing blow was his father, Einar.
He swooped down on him from a great height and landed on his already flailing wings. Einar was victorious and his raven cries could be hear by Eilam and Aiyana as they crashed with force into the ocean. Aiyana was slapped in the face by a wall of water that knocked her unconscious immediately and she started to slowly sink to the bottom of the Pacific.
Eilam used his last ounce of energy to morph back into his human form and hit the water seconds after her, the salt water instantly burning the cuts on his back. He fought to stay conscious, and as he too drifted towards the sea bed he gazed the ocean’s surface to scan for anyone who could save them now. He knew he was too weak, and as he closed his eyes he wondered where his precious Aiyana was.
Chapter Ten
She felt cold and shivered involuntarily as a draught managed to find her in the blackness. She tried to fight to stay asleep, to keep her eyes closed, but the persistent cold had started to make her teeth chatter. A blinding headache throbbed at her temples and struggled to focus on anything in particular.
With a sudden bought of nausea, she awoke properly to find herself flying low to the ground in the claws of a raven she didn’t know. The animal must have sensed her stir and cried out to her – almost like it was telling her to stay still.
Oh my god, I think I’m gonna be sick she thought, not liking the idea one little bit whilst she dangled precariously from the claws of a bird whilst flying like the wind. She
could just about imagine the back splatter as it hit her in the face.
She swallowed quickly in the hopes that whatever bile was even thinking about coming up would think twice and remain in her stomach. Her clothes were soaking wet, head to toe dripping with the sea water that she had landed in. She had no idea how they had got her out, but it can’t have been too long ago for her hair was still matted to her head in wet clumps where the wind hadn’t yet dried it. Her teeth clattered even more so now that she was fully awake and she would have given anything for a hot shower and a cup of warm cocoa.
With a sudden panic that filled her with dread she realised that she was neglecting to remember one very important thing as she tried to get a grip on her lucidity - Eilam. She felt a fresh wave of sickness as she tried to scan around her for him and as she peered over her shoulder and under the plumage of the raven that was carrying her she caught sight of him in the claws of another.
He was inert, he was injured and her feelings of grief for him instantly tugged on her heartstrings. The rest of the flock were fanned out either side of him, protecting one of their own, but perhaps she realised in horror it might be too late to save him.
She let out a half sob, it choking in her throat as she tried to call out to him.
“Eilam,” she screamed. “Eilam, please talk to me,” she begged, tears streaming down her face by now.
What had she done? How could she have put him in harm’s way! All because she was stupid enough to open her front door to strangers. Why, oh why had she been such an idiot? Her body racked with sobs now, chest heaving as she blubbed into the wind. She wondered if anything could make this right or would she lose the one person who she had felt love for since she had lost her parents.
Eilam’s head hung limply in front of him; neither wind nor flight rousing him from his state of unconsciousness. She wanted him on the ground so she could look at him, help him. She couldn’t do that whilst they were still in the air.
“Put me down, please?” she implored the raven that carried her. It shook its head and ruffled it feathers, a clear no in its actions. At least it didn’t squawk at her this time, she didn’t think her headache could take anymore loud ear piercing cries.
She turned her attention back to Eilam, desperate for him to say something, anything.
“Eilam,” she cried again, “talk to me, please,” but her shouts fell on deaf ears and she could do nothing but watch on in misery.
With dawn having broken across the sky, the ravens seemed to be in a hurry to get to their destination, and she knew without a doubt where that would be.
She had ridden through these valleys more times than she cared to count, and knew most of the roads like the back of her hand. The ravens were on their way home to Springbrook Mountain – home to where their nest was hidden from the other flock and the prying eyes of the city. She willed her raven to go faster as though Eilam’s life depended on it, kind of like one does on a horse when they get their first taste for speed. She had to admit though - this flying business was way cooler.
The ravens climbed in altitude until they reached the pinnacle; there they circled the waterfall that ran over the rocky ledge before floating down to the entrance to the cave where Aiyana had first seen Eilam enter. It was a lot wider than what it had appeared from the ground and as the raven that carried her placed her on the ledge she easily walked forward without any fear of banging her head. The raven followed closely behind and like Eilam before him, he morphed into his human form first, with his big black wings still flapping wildly from the backs of his shoulder blades. Despite her continuing dizziness and need to be sick, Aiyana was impressed nonetheless to see another raven change right in front of her. This man was younger than Eilam, with the same hair black as night, and eyes of coal, but his face was not similar in any other way. The deep sunken dimples on either cheek gave him a cheeky expression even though his manner was serious.
“You have to move back from the entrance,” he instructed her, “the others are coming now and we need to make way to bring Eilam through,” he said - his voice rather masculine for such a young man. She nodded she understood and followed him through the cave.
She knew this was Eilam’s ‘nest’, but that was where the correlation between a real bird’s nest and theirs ended. This was a home, tunnels of rock in the mountain carved into long corridors and separate rooms. There was no fire that lit the way, yet she could see and came to realise that there were skylights dotted here and there which afforded the necessary light to see your way through.
The nest had a centre chasm which had tables made of wood from the big old fig trees that littered the forest floor and off the centre chasm ran many tunnels that appeared to be individual sleep quarters from what she could see of things. The raven who had brought her back indicated she should sit at one of the tables and wait for the others to return. He promised that once they had Eilam settled then they would fix her up with some dry clothes. She nodded her thanks and sat glumly waiting for news on his condition. She wanted desperately to help in any way she could, but felt at the moment she was a bit like a third wheel.
Here Eilam was on the brink of death and she knew they wouldn’t want to have to fuss over her too. So instead she sat patiently, wringing her hands raw from the tension that was mounting as she suffered the inexplicable loss she was feeling.
There was commotion then, shouts in human voices -not ravens, as they made their way towards her. Those in front were directing those who carried Eilam’s body and fresh tears stung at her eyes to still see him so inert and unresponsive.
They made their way to the very back of the nest and she ignored the looks and stares she was getting as she got up to follow them. They were all a young flock, men and women, but none older than she. These must all be the offspring of the originals, she thought. They entered the last room in the nest, the entrance covered by large fern fronds similar to the ones she had seen growing in the mountains. They were pulled aside now and the young men carried Eilam in and lay him down on a large bed. The frame was the same wood that had been sourced from the surrounding forest and it was plush with feathers and heather that had been foraged by the ravens. Over the top were sheets – not from nature, but from a department store in town. Obviously their flock didn’t seem to go completely without the modern necessities.
Most of the flock left now, only two remained at his side. They checked his body over completely, turning him this way and that, inspecting the wounds on his back, feeling his pulse, running their hands over bones to check for breakages. She couldn’t stand the suspense anymore – it was absolutely killing her.
“Will he be okay?” she sobbed - not even caring to be embarrassed in front of these strangers. They looked at her now, as though only just realising that she was even in the room. They weren’t unkind though, just preoccupied. The older looking of the two with furrow lines on his brow came over to her now and spoke to her in whispers.
“He should make it. It will take some looking after to heal those wounds on his back – the claws of the ravens have done the most damage and cut deep into his flesh. I’m going to have to fly out and get some herbs to make a paste to put on the cuts before they get infected. His collar bone is broken and he won’t be able to fly until it mends and he has a concussion. He’s very weak right now and needs to rest,” he said kindly.
“Shouldn’t we take him to a Doctor?” she asked.
“It’s not that simple. The short answer is no, for many reasons but the two main being that we’ve never tried human medicine in our bodies and it’s just about as likely to kill him rather than cure him and the second problem we face is the minute the Doc lays eyes on his markings on his lower back he’ll know he’s part of the new race. The APP puts bulletins out to these places on a regular basis, you know”.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” she said feeling like a complete idiot.
“It’s okay, you’re not to know, but it is important for his safety that he r
emains here and we treat him as best we can,” he said.
“May I stay with him?” she asked hopefully.
He contemplated for a minute and looked to his companion to obtain a silent confirmation in the nod of a head.
“You can stay, but you have to promise you won’t interfere with how we treat him,” he said.
She sighed in relief. “I promise I won’t get in the way. I could help you apply the herbs to his back if that would help,” she offered as she dried the tears from her face.
He nodded. “Okay. I’ll be back soon”. He went to leave then but she called out to him.
“I don’t even know your name,” she said guiltily.
He stopped and turned around to face her. “My name is Cillian, and dimples over there is called Reed,” he said.
“Well thank you both, for everything I mean,” she said with gratitude.
They both nodded at her and Reed flashed his dimples in a parting smile. Aiyana knew that they must feel a bit apprehensive at having her here, but she was grateful that they had hadn’t kicked her out on her arse just yet.
