Secret Of The Bands

[Bitty The Cat]

SECRET OF THE
~BANDS~

--------------

It was warm in summer; everyone knew that. Simple and complex organisms alike knew it... and loved it. Shiny black feathers spread out in the fresh sun, and bright eyes opened up to watch the world around him. He lifted himself off the branch he'd been sleeping on, and slapped his wings against the air, sending him airborne. He slammed up higher into the air, giving a little smile as he watched the sky. He then flipped over and shot back down like a bullet, enjoying the feeling of wind on his wings.

This was Rune's life. He lived on the free and easy, soaring high and loving the world for what it was. He would visit the local park for food (and scritchies!), wander the shores of the lake and beachcomb, tease the neighborhood cats, and then come back for the evening and chat with his friends. It was great.

Thunder crackled nearby. A storm! He loved flying through storms. As long as there was no lightning, he loved to swish through the branches and feel the water wash over his feathers, reaching dirt and debris even his nimble beak couldn't hope to reach.

An eager caw made him flip with excitement. This was a friend of his, named Lula. She was a little small for a crow, but that was alright - she was cute and silly, and Rune liked her!

"Rune!" She called out, and the big crow paused, flapping hard to hover to the best of his ability. "Rune, come quick!"

"What?" He asked, slipping down to get to her level. Her shiny black feathers were ruffled - she'd been in a hurry.

"There's been an accident, with Mora. Come on- you need to see it." She turned on a dime and flapped away toward the Barnhouse, a space Rune visited occasionally in the wintertime to snuggle on the hot haybails. He didn't ask questions, he just went.

She lead him over to the crops next to the barn. Rune had to admit he'd raided that once: just for some corn. It was a dare, and he was a yearling. He felt stupid even now. It hadn't even really tasted that great.

She landed in the shadow of the Straw Man in the middle of the crop. Rune counted maybe twelve or fifteen crows, and he slipped in a vulturelike circle to see what had occured.

Horror made him drop to the ground in an unceremonious heap. There was a crow there - a dead one. This wouldn't have been so horrific if the circumstances were different, but it wasn't a normal death.

The crow had landed awkwardly on her head, and then flopped to the side, giving her the appearance of a mangled wet rag. Her wings were splayed as if she were dancing beside her, and her body... Well, that was the worst part. She had a perfectly round hole in her chest, right where her sternum would be. Rune approached slowly, eyes wide with terror. One of the older crows, whom Rune had never seen, came forward and shooed him off. He then reached his beak into the wound (Rune shuddered at this) and pulled an object out.

It was round and small, slightly flattened, presumably by impact. The elder crow dropped it on the ground, sitting in the curve of a greybrown leaf from last year. It was coated in blood and smelled vaguely like smoke.

"This is a Thunderstone." The elder explained, motioning with a wing to the strange bead. "I've seen these before."

"What are they?" An elderly female, Rune's mother Clover, asked with a small shiver.

"I don't know. They come from the Man, though - particularly, his gun. In my last flock, another Man shot anothet crow just like this. In the belly. Died the moment he hit the ground."

"What should we do?" Lula asked softly, pressing in terror next to Rune. "What if the Man does it again?"

"Well, this is going to sound insane, but... we'll have to leave the Barn Land." The elder said quietly.

Rune's mind quickly left reality for a moment. Leave the Barn Land? But that was the only home he'd ever known! Sure, he'd gone pretty far - by crow standards. He'd always come back to the Barn Land. In fact, a lot of the crows he associated with had been born here. His mother had been hatched inside the actual Barn.

"We can't leave." Lula whispered, looking at Rune, pulling him away from his thoughts. "This is our home."

Rune's eyes went from her to the carcass. He could smell the very faint smell of decay even now, and he cringed. He reached forward with his wing and traced the body, shuddering at the lifeless twinge of feathers.

"The Man doesn't think so."

-TO BE CONTINUED! DON'T BE AFRAID TO COMMENT!-

[Bitty The Cat]

Eventually the flock agreed to leave. Rune woke up on the last day they would be living in the area; He sighed softly from his small roost inside a pine tree, his eyes watery from the wind. He launched off and spread out his wings, stretching the muscles until his back cracked satisfyingly. He sighed and rose high into the sky, getting as far above the earth as he could.

The Barn Land was more beautiful now than Rune ever remembered. Now that he was leaving it, he realized how much he would miss it, all at once. He let out a long sigh and dipped back down again, flying toward the Silo.

The Silo was the only place where the Man didn't go. He had no reason to. There was an open section in the roof where the crows could fly in unseen, to roost and discuss.

When he arrived, he could hear other crows already, cawing away inside. He banked and swept in, finding a spot close to the entrance where he could settle down. Lula sauntered toward him, a scared look on her face.

"I still don't like the idea of leaving." The female crow whispered softly. "We were all hatched here..."

"Not all of us."

All the crows looked up to see the elder that had called their attention to the body next to the Straw Man. Rune realized he still didn't know his name.

"I was not hatched here." The elder crow explained. "I was from another area entirely, and came here quite by accident after a storm seperated me from my homeland. I came here lost and disoriented; however, after the incident, I got a calling - pulling me in one direction, always."

Lula nudged Rune. "That's the Migration Call, I'd bet."

"I will follow this feeling as best I can. If you wish to follow me, then you may. If you want to stay here, so be it."

With that, the elder flew out of the Silo. Rune thrust his wings out to take off, but Lula whimpered softly.

"I don't want to go." She whispered softly.

"But Lula... You'll be shot by the Man." Rune turned and looked at her worriedly, eyes widened. "You can't stay."

"I'm not leaving my home." Lula said decisively. "No matter what. If he shoots me... Oh well." She sighed. "Good luck on your trip."

Rune felt his heart tear in two. Lula was his closest friend, and the only crow he trusted with his life. How could he leave her? But the flock was getting farther away, and he wanted to leave.

He sighed softly and nodded. "Bye, Lula." He turned and flew out the window, following the black mass that was the flock. He listened to the discussion, but there were too many at a time to focus.

***

The Elder had found a human road and was leading them down it. Sometimes they flew, sometimes they walked. When they walked, the Elder instructed them to forage: he forsaw it was going to be a long journey.

Rune was starting to wonder where they were going to roost. There were roads on every side of them, and all the vegitation was barely enough to suit half the flock. Unless they split, none of them could fit in such close quarters.

Then the Elder cried out, "I've found our roost!"

It was a large Human building. There were lots of cars in front of it, along with a few picnic tables and signs. There were a few giant semitrucks, but Rune didn't feel threatened. The smell of food was in the air.

The Elder lead them over to the picnic area. Almost immediately all of them were in great big black bins. Rune had to smack at two other crows as they tried to steal some food; he ended up giving them the shiny stuff he found in return for leaving him alone.

Suddenly one of the humans took out a black object, poked at it with their finger, and pushed it up to their head, chattering into it. Rune cocked his head and flew over, landing on the table next to the one she was sitting at. He watched her, wishing he could make sense of the sounds. She kept glancing at Rune, so she was obviously talking about him, or the other crows. But why did the black box care? It wasn't even alive.

He sighed and flew back to the flock, who was getting drowsy. He sighed and settled with them, eyes slowly closing. It was nice.

Hours into the night, he thought he heard the sound of boots walking through the darkness of midnight. He paid no mind.