Sick Bird

An Art Project

Cub pov:

I was honestly confused why I was heading over to Scar's house at such a late hour, especially when he was supposed to be patrolling. I guess the attack on the city really made Scar want to go home. As I made my way up to his door, I couldn't help but look around, making sure I wasn't followed for some reason before knocking. I know I didn't necessarily need to knock, but old habits die hard, especially with him.

Scar was quick to open the door and practically pulled me inside. "Geez, a little warning next time?" I asked, fixing my outfit a little bit. "Sorry, I just didn't want anyone to see him," Scar said sheepishly, rubbing his arm. He was dressed up as Hot Guy, so I could tell he was supposed to be out patrolling and he knew he was supposed to be out patrolling. But...I was confused about who Scar meant by "him."

"Who?" I asked, walking into the living room a bit more before freezing in place when I saw what was on his couch.

"Are you serious right now?" I asked, my voice trying not to betray my anger. Scar sheepishly rubbed his arm again.

There, on his couch, was a passed-out villain-correction, a super villain. Poultry Man, his pristine white wings wrapped around him slightly, lay there in a mess of feathers and exhaustion. His sandy blonde hair was tossed about and very messy. His normal red sweater, part of his costume, looked tattered and torn, most likely from the attack on the city earlier that night.

I looked at Scar for an explanation. "I... Look, it's really hard to explain, but I caught him. His wings and everything... But Crimson wasn't anywhere around. He kept struggling, and the net wrapped around his wings pretty tightly, causing him significant pain. So I...uh, I let him go from the net. I expected to be either attacked or for him to run, but what I didn't expect was for him to latch onto me and start sobbing. Crimson hurt him a lot. He's got bruises and scratches on his chest and ribs. He moved his mask a little bit, and I think he has a black eye and bruises on his face too," he said, panic creeping into his voice as he came clean with nearly all of it.

I stared at Scar, processing what he had just told me. Poultry Man, one of the city's most notorious villains out of the four. "Annnnnd he had some really valuable information about Crimson and something else that's going on. People are getting possessed, acting differently. More importantly, they're still in their heads, just unable to do anything about it, like they're completely possessed," Scar tried to explain.

But I couldn't help the rage boiling up inside me. "What if he's lying, Scar? We can't trust him-he's a villain."

Scar looked down, clearly conflicted. "I know it's hard to believe, but he seemed genuine. And if there's even a chance that what he's saying is true, we need to find out more. We can't just ignore this."

"Or we could be walking into a trap," I snapped. "We can't just take his word for it. He's a master manipulator. How do we know this isn't some elaborate ploy?"

Scar sighed, rubbing his temples. "I don't know. But what if he's right? What if Crimson is behind this and people are getting possessed? Crimson and poultry man were practically inseparable for the longest time. Then, Crimson came back from his trip, and he wasn't acting any different at first. But that same night, he changed. It was subtle, but he was more aggressive, more agitated."

I looked at him with genuine confusion. "How do you know that? Were you at their place, Scar?"

He froze mid-sentence, covering his mouth as he tried to figure out a way to explain. The hesitation in his eyes was clear, and I felt a sinking feeling in my gut.

"Scar," I pressed, my voice low. "What aren't you telling me?"

He swallowed hard, avoiding my gaze. "I... Crimson, he used a portal that he can create to come into my office. He dropped off a very, very sick birdie in... well, on my sofa and asked me to take care of him. He took me back to their place, and that's where I've been, by the way. Thanks for taking care of Jelly during my sudden departure. Uh, anyway, that's how I know he came back-through a portal. But he didn't leave the same way. I figured he would have come back like a civilian, like on a plane or in a car, because that's what he used to drive off with originally-a car."