Led by Gryphin and Barin, Team X was on the move to Zitonia. Rubi remained in the Land of Mammals, so she could rest and give birth to her child when the time came. To reach the Ganchian Ocean, the team needed to travel east, through the Land of Birds. Even though Mory was briefly passing through his homeland, he felt like an outsider. They didn't go through any residential areas, but he still felt like the eyes of the hawks were watching him.
Things seemed fine at first, as they passed through the grasslands of Crow Village. The autumn season was in full swing, so it was a calm afternoon with a light, cool breeze. They carried their biome cruisers and kept things moving at a steady pace.
"Hey, what's that up there?" Thacris asked.
Mory looked up and saw a man flying over them. He recognized the BLAU uniform that the guy was wearing. Mory knew that this meant trouble for them. He looked around and saw a few more men circling over them. The people that were carrying the leading biome cruiser stopped and lowered it to the ground. The flyers got out of the cruiser. Gryphin walked back to the trailing cruisers and instructed everyone to put them down.
"Hoods and masks up. Maneks on. Prepare to fight!" said Gryphin.
There were now dozens of troops flying over them like flies over rotting meat. They began to land around the team. The birds had them surrounded. Mory struggled to believe what was happening. Not only was he moments away from his first taste of war, but he was facing off against his own people. For over a quarter of a year he was ready to fight, but fighting the birds was not what he had in mind.
The BLAU major that was there stepped forward and spoke.
"Due to suspicions that you are all citizens of Keanos, who have committed acts of conspiracy against the Keanoan lands, I hereby declare that the Bird Land Air Unit will now take you into its custody. Your trials and sentences will be carried out by the judicial system at the continental level. Surrender now, and obey our commands. If you resist, we will use deadly force if necessary."
"To hell with that!" said Barin. "Team X, attack!"
The spora fighters ran up on the birds. Mory and a few others hesitated to join in on the action-mostly the others who were also from the Land of Birds. They grew up with some of those BLAU troops that they were now being ordered to fight. The scene that unfolded before Mory's eyes was insane. He watched a raccoon fighter get an eye stabbed out by a talon. He witnessed a bird fighter get knocked out by a kick to the head from a horse girl. Sylo just might have been the scariest person there. She fearlessly ran to one of the birds and chomped down on a man's forearm. Mory was meters away, but he could still hear the man's bones crushing from the force of the bite and the terrible scream that he let out.
Time seemed to slow down as warriors fell left and right around him. In his mind, he questioned if he truly ever wanted to fight. The heat of battle was more intense than he thought it would be. The questions faded away when he saw the guy who he had hated for years. Terias was fighting just a few meters away. Mory drew his sword.
Controlled by rage, Mory glided straight for Terias and steadied his sword so he could slice him up. Terias caught sight of Mory and blocked his slash with some type of metal disk. Mory did a front flip and landed on his feet, off to the side. The two of them looked at each other.
"I've been waiting a while to kick your ass," said Mory.
"Do I know you?" Terias asked.
Mory remembered that he was wearing a hood and mask and removed it. Terias seemed surprised to see Mory's face.
"Squirrel boy? What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"I'm ridding this world of scumbags like you."
"I'm the scumbag? You're the one who's turned his back on his homeland." Terias then smirked and mockingly asked, "What would your father think about this?"
"Shut your damn mouth!" Mory shouted.
Mory bolted in and jabbed the sword at him. Terias stepped to the side and parried the blade away. He took a swing at Mory with the razor-sharp disk. Mory ducked and then punched Terias in the stomach with his left fist. Terias grimaced while taking a step back, but then he did a reverse spin and kicked Mory's right forearm, causing him to drop his sword. Terias tried to whack Mory with the disk again, but Mory rolled out of the way. Mory glided to his sword, but Terias threw his disk in that direction and Mory had to dodge it.
When Mory saw that the disk had missed, he picked the sword up and held it in front of him. He wanted to attack Terias, but then he noticed an odd reflection of light on his sword. He turned around and blocked the returning razor disk with his sword. The force from the disk knocked the sword out of his hands, and both weapons fell to the ground.
While Mory was distracted, Terias flew in and grabbed his arms with his bird feet. Terias lifted him and pulled him into the sky. In moments, they were high enough to the point where a fall for an ordinary human would be fatal.
Terias looked down at Mory with his condescending gaze. "Just like old times, huh, Mory. Like always, I'm the hawk and you're the prey."
Mory kicked his legs back hard, which caused his body to flip out of Terias's grip. His feet came up high enough for him to shove them into Terias's lower back. Once Terias was off-balance, Mory glided to him and put him in a headlock.
Mory spoke into Terias's ear. "It doesn't matter if you're a hawk. I'm the worm who eats the bird!"
Terias squirmed around until he slid out of Mory's hold, then he pushed him away. The two zipped and zoomed through the sky, searching for openings to land punches.
Terias sped towards Mory and shouted, "You're just a failure who's beneath us! This land doesn't need trash like you! Stop trying to pretend that you're flying, because you never will!"
Mory was able to hover out of the way of Terias's grab attempt. He swung with a right hook, which Terias blocked with his arm. Mory responded to Terias's remarks.
"You're just a spoiled brat!" Mory grabbed Terias's arm. "You didn't work for a damn thing and you're not anything special! I couldn't care less about what happens to this land, especially if it's ruled by you!"
They fought and wrestled as they descended. Terias had more to say.
"Someone like you could never understand! I'm seen as a prodigy. Expectations are high and I'm surrounded by parasites. There's only one person who I can call a friend. You'll never have to face the pressure that I do!"
"Bullshit! I was never given a chance. I had zero expectations. Try being laughed at, beaten, and hated by everyone. Then see if you can understand me!"
Mory pushed Terias away with his legs. They both reached the ground and landed on their feet. Neither one of them was ready to quit. They flew towards each other with balled fists. Mory concentrated on Terias's beak. He wanted to shut the hawk up once and for all. He pulled his arm back, ready to strike, but he wouldn't get the chance to hit him. A hooded person with bat wings flew in and grabbed Terias. He squirmed and cursed while trying to get free from the bat, but the person kept their grip and carried Terias away from the battle.
Mory was so invested in his fight with Terias, he forgot he was in the middle of a war battle.
Gryphin yelled, "Everybody, make sure your hoods and masks are on! Release the skunk bombs!"
Some of the team X flyers that were airborne dropped a bunch of white balls that busted when they hit the ground. Mory put his hood and mask back on. The BLAU troops immediately covered their noses and mouths. Some of them looked like they were going to throw up. A little bit of the smell got pass Mory's mask barrier. It was definitely the stench of skunk spray.
Barin shouted, "Flyers, man the cruisers. Walkers, get inside. We're getting out of here."
Mory ran to his sword and picked it up. He then ran to his cruiser and glided in through the window. Everybody else eventually clambered into the cruiser after him. He was glad to see that all of his friends were alive and well. Barin and Gryphin did a quick sweep of the place, making sure no one was being left behind, and then they climbed into their cruisers. The flyers took off, and Team x was able to escape from the birds, who were in disarray from the potent skunk fumes.
Mory looked around at everyone. They all either looked exhausted, stunned or both.
"That was intense," Thacris said to Mory. "I've never been so scared in my entire life."