Girl who Speaks to Birds

Chapter 20

Be like the bird who, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing she hath wings.

~Victor Hugo

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Fear clawed its way up inside me as I stared into those eyes. Those eyes that belonged to the father that I had spent so much time with; had created so many memories with.

And he had betrayed me. He had attacked me and I had hardly gotten out! I wanted to fly away, but the many-holed cage from the institute prevented that.

"I see you've escaped our clutches just to fall into another's." he began "You are an unwise little shifter."

So, what was he going to do? I shivered as he stared at me, trying to think happy thoughts.

"Normally, we'd execute shifters that fall into our clutches. But you see, shifters like yourself are unusual. So, the council voted to keep you alive if you agree to work for us. Surely someone inheriting the wisdom of your mother and I would agree to the deal. I will give you the ten minutes until we arrive at the center to decide. If your answer is not yes, then we will kill you in the most painful way possible."

Way to persuade, Dad. Go you. Sense the sarcasm in my thoughts. I glared at him, and he sent a cold, hard stare my way. Well, I wouldn't have to stay long. If I agreed to his deal, maybe I could just try and dodge the bullets and fly away. I looked at my father again; he was still glaring, but now he was holding a tazer to the cage as he drove.

"Nice to know he cares in his own demented way."

"Sarcasm, I presume?"

"Pretty much."

"Just accept the deal. You know, those places may have those impressive weapons, but they're mostly just prototypes. And from what I've heard, tunneling underneath the force-field is fairly easy. Sure, that was four years ago, but still."

"They have a force-field?"

"Yeah."

"And here I was, thinking I could just fly away."

"I doubt they'd make it that easy. They want to use some of the shifters as slaves, and you can imagine how ticked off they'd be if they escaped."

"Yeah. So, what do I do? Agree to the deal and eventually escape?"

"Yes. Just try and calm down until you arrive."

She said try. So I tried. I failed.

I trembled as the car slowed. But we weren't in a garage or anything like that. He looked back at me and chuckled, most likely at my puzzled expression. He grabbed the remote from the seat beside him and pressed a button. Out of nowhere, a shimmering wall appeared then disapeared, and I felt the car move forward. He must've disabled the force-field, I realized.

Soon, the car slowed to a halt, and I heard the sound of the car door opening. The cage rattled, and I had to hold on tight as my father grabbed my cage. I shivered, knowing what I had to do. I looked through the miniscule holes in the cage, watching as I was brought into a white, intimidating building. I looked at my father, begging him with my eyes to set me free. He took no notice of my non-verbal pleads.

The door opened, and I was plunged into darkness. I could see the very faint outline of a person just a few steps away.

"Mr. Ruth," he said "Do you have the bird shifter?"

"Yes, Mr. Jones," I heard my father say "Where shall I place it?"

Excuse me, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm not an it. I wanted to shout, but figured that it would only result in myself looking stupid.

"On the table, Mr. Ruth. I will handle the rest."

The cage shook as I was placed on the table, and I could hear the footsteps of my father leaving the room. Well thanks Dad. Way to be a good parent. Leave my alone in here with a stranger. I sighed. This was just great.

"You'll be fine, Madelyn."

I looked at the shadowy figure drawing closer, trembling fearfully.

"Hello, bird shifter." the figure said in a raspy voice.

I trembled, and the man spoke again. "Submit to the hunter society, and you shall live. If you do not, you shall die in the most painful way that my glorious society has devised. Unshift, and tell me your decision. And if you have any plans of escape, extinguish them. There is no way out of here for you."

He unlatched the cage and grabbed me. He glared into my eyes, and I shook, terrified. He grinned twistedly, and I fought the urge to glare at him. He set me down and commanded me to unshift. Me, being the terrified bird-shifter I was, unshifted.

"If you try to escape, I'll break every bone in your wings."

Sorry to break it to you little guy, but I can heal. So ha. I didn't say it aloud, just in case he had some way to disable it, but I sure was thinking it. I nodded.

"What is your decision?" he asked, giving me a cold, hard stare.

"I will submit." I replied, though it pained me to say that.

"Wise decision. Now, I will retrieve the collar. Stay here, or I will punish you myself."

He walked off, and I looked - well, tried to look - through the darkness. Moments later, he came back and snapped a dog collar on my neck. Then, he put a leash on and started tugging on it, taking me out of the building. Then, he started leading me to horse stables, and opened the door.

"Your working will start tomorrow. Now, I've got to fill out some of the information. Trying to escape will lead to punishment." he growled raspily, and I nodded. He undid the leash and shoved me into the stable. It stunk, but I tried to ignore it.

"This is just great."

"Just be patient. You'll get out of here soon."

"They're jerks. I mean, a collar! A leash!"

"Obey them. I mean, you don't have to like it, but it's better than the alternative."

"Alright. I'll do it. But I sure as heck won't like it."

A/N- Sorry for not updating yesterday, there was a WiFi outage and I couldn't type. But here's the update! Please comment, vote, and I'll see you next chapter! Bye for now!