Birds of Prey

In Which He Meets His Archnemesis

I've realized that this book will probably be more of an Ice Queen of Lessaenes-style series of chronological anecdotes than an actual book (I COULD make an entire book of Ravenna and the Eagle's story, but I would rather focus on When Numbers Fail). That also means we get to skip to the juicy bits though! Hehehehehe

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The Eagle wasn't normally a bad sleeper, but something about the fluctuating temperatures and incessant winds on Jacker Island found him strolling across the beach at approximately four in the morning. He raised his head in annoyance at the sound of shouts from the other side of the compound. Who else was awake at this time? And what were they screaming for? 

The Eagle was no stranger to the Jackers or their ways- no, he had done his research before coming to the island. He knew how dangerous they could be, and how much they disliked outsiders interfering in their activities. But the money he had offered Redface Joe afforded him some protection on the island- surely he had license to go investigate.

As he rounded a corner, turning onto the far side of the island, the shouts grew louder and their source came into view. A line of new Jacker recruits of all ages stood on the beach, the waves nipping at their feet. Well, stood was an overstatement. Most of them looked like their knees would buckle any second, their faces gaunt from exhaustion. The Eagle could guess that they had been there a very long time.

Something about the scene warned him to stay away, but his curiosity drew him closer. Staying in the shadow of the nearest building to escape notice, he watched as a tall young man in a camo vest paced back and forth behind the line of recruits, running his hands through his dirty blonde hair. Just as the man passed him, one of the recruits cried out in pain as his legs gave out under him and he crashed into the wet ground. The man's reaction was instantaneous. He let out a string of obscenities as he grabbed the poor boy by the collar and lifted him up. 

"Lazy pig! You eat my dad's food and live under my dad's roof and you don't have half the strength it would take to do us any good." 

"I'm... I'm sorry, Camden, please..." his begging was perfunctory, a mere formality. He knew as well as one could that there was no such thing as mercy on this island. 

"What are you looking at? Eyes toward the ocean! Keep watching for Order planes!" Camden screamed when the other recruits' heads began to turn, even though he was well aware that the chances of the Order of Chance flying past the island now of all times were next to nothing. 

The Eagle chuckled under his breath. This was the first time he'd ever seen Camden Eadley, and to be completely honest, he was a little disappointed. The Jacker heir's impressive build and ruthless words, while intimidating to most, were laughable at best to him. They saw a cruel leader in the making while all the Eagle saw was a scared boy exercising his limited power in a sad effort to distract from the fact that his father's empire was coming apart at the seams. 

"Hey, you! What do you think you're looking at?" 

The Eagle flinched when Camden looked in his direction. He'd been spotted... or had he. In a few moments, he realized that Camden wasn't looking directly at him, but past him. Turning his head, he saw Ravenna a few feet away from him, sitting in her wheelchair out in the open. She'd been so silent and still that he hadn't even noticed her!

"Stop acting like any girl would voluntarily watch you. You know I can't move." The words slipped right off her tongue as if she had been planning them for ages, and the Eagle felt a smile rising to his face. She was quite literally the most powerless individual he had ever encountered, and yet there was a palpable air of confidence to everything she did. At least now, he was sure that some aspects of being a royal were products of nature, and not nurture. 

As he looked into her deep green eyes, he wondered what she would think if she knew the truth about who she was. Although he knew it would put his own true identity at risk, a part of him wanted to tell her. Just to see the rage on her face... the raw, beautiful anger. 

"How dare you!? Do you have any idea who you're talking to?" the Eagle was pulled out of his thoughts by Camden's furious voice. He stalked closer, balling his hands into fists, as the Jacker recruits on the shoreline watched intently. Surely, many of them were wondering if these were the words that would end Ravenna's life. 

"I'm done with you. I'm so. Done. With. You." The Eagle shrunk down to his knees to avoid notice as Camden approached Ravenna, grabbing her shoulders with both hands. "My dad may not want to kill you, but my dad's not here right now, so I make the rules." Camden stepped behind her wheelchair and began to push it sloppily across the bumpy ground. "You just slipped and fell into the ocean. Don't worry- it'll look like an accident. Not that anyone would bother to investigate. After all, you're nothing. Absolutely nothing." 

The Eagle knew he had to stop Camden. He was here on this island with a plan, and Ravenna was essential to it. But what surprised him was the eagerness with which he ran out of his hiding place and followed the pair down the beach. He hated to admit it, but he was beginning to develop an odd attachment to her. 

"She's not nothing!" the Eagle yelled emphatically. Camden turned around, his eyes sparkling with mild amusement. 

"Look, your money's the only reason you're not down there," he gestured to the row of recruits along the beach. "It may give you freedom but it doesn't give you power. So I'd suggest that you shut up and stop trying to interfere with the way things are run around here." 

"You're threatening the innocent, and depriving the people who depend on you of their well-earned sleep and their basic dignity. And then you have the gall to tell a girl whose life has been nothing but suffering that she is nothing! As a fellow human being, I find the need to step in."

At this, Ravenna's cool gaze rose to meet the Eagle's. For the first time ever, he thought he saw a hint of a smile flicker across her face. 

"You say she's not nothing. You think you're such a philanthropist! Throwing your money around, defending the innocent! Well, I challenge you to prove your words. Get her to do one useful thing for the Jackers, I dare you!" Camden smirked, confident that the Eagle could never meet his demands. The Eagle responded to his outburst with a cool gaze. 

"Challenge accepted."