Prelude

“THREE, two, one… NOW!” 

The soldiers surged forward as a single mass, busting the door wide open. As trained, they stopped to point out their guns, moving slowly with them close to their chests. They separated and searched the area, running through different rooms and pushing away any furniture that could be used as a hiding spot. The more they looked, however, the more it appeared the observatory was empty of any life. 

Although he would never admit it, Reakubowi was a bit relieved that the occupants of this place were already gone. If it wasn’t for the many drafts, he wouldn’t be here, overrunning innocent peoples’ homes with a gun. But what choice did he have? To be suspected as a traitor in this country now meant certain death.

Or worse.

He’d become so used to the sound of the other soldiers exchanging short words that when they suddenly fell quiet, he was quick to turn towards the door. A shadow seemed to fall over the whole room when the tall figure entered, the wooden floor creaking under his boots. He wore a particularly extravagant uniform adorned with several medals, but his naked face was dark under his cap, a jagged scar and empty socket on one side where an eye had been shot out. 

General Masvitaski Bluemask. The leader of Politzania.

Nobody spoke at first, as if the army was too nervous to tell him they’d found nothing. All the while he cocked his head one way and then the other, his one eye seeming to glare at all of them at once. Finally, one of the higher soldiers would step forward, his feathers quivering despite his small, puffed up chest.

“General. We searched the entire building. The Whitewings must’ve left before we arrived.” 

Masvitaski was silent for a few seconds as he stared down at the small bird. 

“They left…?” He echoed in a tiny voice, before whipping around with a shout that boomed through the walls. “Who let this happen?”

Reakubowi was by no means guilty, but when the general got angry, it was enough to make the toughest man nervous, even if just for the sheer unpredictability of his temper. The soldiers in the room shifted anxiously as if they couldn’t get their words out. One of the ones further back managed to speak up, however.

“General! General! We found this.” 

He ran to the front of the crowd, and Masvitaski’s feathery crest lowered. Reakubowi craned his neck, just managing to glimpse a small piece of paper being handed to the general. He examined it for a few seconds before moving his gaze up slowly. 

“Signed… Borotu… Blackcap…” He read in a low voice, “These traitors were warned.”

Reakubowi gulped as Masvitaski gradually walked through the crowd, like a snake, with an air of fake repose. His blood red eye passed over each soldier. 

“Well, who was responsible? Speak up, now,” he spoke to all of them in an eerily calm voice, “Of course, it was just one tiny little bird. It couldn’t have meant that much.” 

He came to a stop while nobody answered, and he soon decided he wasn’t going to wait much longer. His facade shut off like a lightbulb as he shouted at them.

“Have none of you touched dominoes? Now you see what your braindead actions have caused us! Everything is at stake here!”

Whipping around, he headed for the door. “Come. Searches will start immediately,” He said as he did so, looking back at them with a glare, “Do not let this happen again.”

Fearing any further wrath, the army followed him without a word. Reakubowi held his gun close to him as he entered the middle of the group. Although he couldn’t possibly share it, he almost admired the bird who had warned his fellow researchers about this overrun. It was courageous, admittedly. Courageous, but stupid. Not that it made him feel any better about all this. If they managed to find Borotu, or any of the others, their punishment would be a lot worse now. They would possibly be killed. 

Please… let them find somewhere safe.

Outside it was dark and chilly. The wind was just beginning to pick up, shaking Reakubowi’s feathers with a cold breeze. 

In the middle of the gravel path, Masvitaski was already shouting orders to the other soldiers. One hand moved in wide motions, splitting up different groups and sending them off, while the other was curled up in a fist to his side. Reakubowi soon realized it was Borotu’s letter that was crumbled up in his claws. 

“You!” Reakubowi couldn’t help but flinch as the general’s eye met his, his hand pointing at his group, “Search the north beach! Go!” 

The eight or nine of them didn’t hesitate, running in the designated direction towards the water. They headed through a taller patch of dead-looking grass, passing by other soldiers who were stomping through the foliage, before making the awkward descent over the boulders separating the dirt and the sand.

The beach widened one way where it joined the mainland but cut off the other way where it wrapped around the peninsula. Although there was still a lot of area to search, it was quite open. Reakubowi didn’t think there’d be anyone hiding around here, but he began to look around anyway to appear busy. The group began to split up, and he caught a few hushed words between the others. 

“Who do you think that Blackcap guy is, anyway?” One thin-looking bird said to a smaller one.

“What does it matter? Some scientist, I guess.” He said in response.

“You’re right… I just wish he didn’t have to make this job harder for us. It’s bad enough havin’ to come all the way out here this early. I oughta be sleepin’. I usually sleep til around-”

“Shh,” The smaller bird snapped, “Just focus on the job, will you?”

Reakubowi tried to ignore them, making his way towards the bank and scanning the water for any movement. Was it possible that some of those researchers left the island by boat? After a few seconds of doing so, he was alerted by a sudden loud noise. A large shadow passed over the sand he was standing on, and he glanced up.

Two military jets quickly passed by, so low to the ground that he could feel a gust of wind as they went past. He watched for a moment as they split up, one heading northeast, and the other heading directly east where the peninsula cut off, flying further into the sky until it was cut off by the sea of clouds. 

Reakubowi was certain the country was low on their planes. In fact, this was the first time he’d seen one in a while.. But he was slightly aware of the skill of their pilots. If they did leave by boat, they probably wouldn’t have much more chance than they did staying on land.