Flight School: Predator

Creature, Uncaged

Should the sun be tasked to search for the moon, it would have to chase the skies. Traces of the night, left behind by he who had come before the other, would have to be gathered and pieced together despite the gaps.

Sheer numbers could not make up for the distance that Jing believed to exist between her and the world, let alone the people that walked the earth. She could not see beyond the forest, dense and dark amidst the fog. Navigating the Box without Sol was inviting every element of hardship and trouble, seeking out the deepest parts of the night.

She stopped every now and then, glancing over her shoulder to see if she had, by some miracle, become alone. Cai returned her gaze with a stare that was blank, prompting her to continue with her lead.

Behind, Vaughn and several Nocturnes searched the skies although amongst them, only few could see the light that Iolani was. Grey clouds masked the light of the moon, shrouding the Eye and thickening the inky darkness.

One of the owls were quick to point this out. No sign of Reux. It's dark and cloudy—I don't think he's got a chance around here unless he's a Nocturne either. Vaughn recognized him from a while back, when he used to drop by Cameron's evening classes just to catch his eye and give a small wave. He was one of Cameron's classmates.

That is precisely why he has been able to take advantage of every predator's time of weakness. Cai spoke on behalf of his phoenix friend. We suspect that Reux might be possessing more than one Avian, one of them being a Nocturne. Keep an eye out for others as well—he's not alone.

The moment of silence, masked by a cloak of darkness, was short-lived. There was an eagle's call in the distance, north-east from where they were heading and all at once, they turned in response. Jing put forth that shifting would prove faster than weaving through the forest at night on foot.

Vaughn, you're in charge. The phoenix turned to him without a second to waste. The latter remained stunned, hesitant mid-shift.

But that's Sullivan, he could not help but point her attention towards the source of notice, who he had recognized almost at once.

Jing was surprised by how close she was to laughing as she watched the face that wore a bitter expression at every council meeting pause in confusion and doubt. It was new. I'll give you a start.

She produced a gauntlet of her own from her satchel, used on rare occasions since Sol could never really fit on her arm, and prompted the vulture to shift. He stared at her, conflict in his eyes before giving in to her demands. She who had seared a white-hot burn across his back—although intended for another—in indifference, was about to give him a boosted take-off.

You never got around to telling your mother what you had always seen in Io, did you? The phoenix said in his Link, having known since the very beginning. You were one of the few who could see his Avian.

Vaughn hated the idea—that she knew from the start and was waiting for him to act, keeping a tab on his every action and thought. I never really liked you.

He heard her laugh for the very first time, ringing at the back of his mind as he perched on her arm and felt the force of being propelled, the wind in his face. I never really liked me too.

*

Vaughn was set on circling the skies after sending a couple of members ahead when the trees behind him lit up with a flash, almost as though a bolt of lightning had descended from the skies and struck the earth below. He had been right—something had distorted the source of the call; either that or it had been a distraction from elsewhere, away from the center of the conflict.