A Little Birdie Named Jay (The Volumes of Blue- Vol. 1) #Wattys2016

Chapter 5: Tick Tock, Little Birdie, Time to Fly

A/N: Ok. First off is A/N the abbreviation for author's note? And if it is, why is there a slash? Anyways, I'm sorry for not updating that often. Simply put, I had a cold, I'm very lazy, and have the awful gift of procrastination. TA DA! If it makes any of you feel better, I got hit in the back of the head with a foam surf board right when I managed to stand up on a steep wave. I face planted in the water. At least it wasn't like that time I tripped over my own feet on a completely flat surface. That takes skills.
Also above is another cover I made for the book, but I like my original one better.
P.S. I might edit this later, so if you're confused in the next chapter, go back and read again.

Ellion was shocked to see the aftermath of their crash. The cart was turned over, new holes acted as skylights and exits, bodies were all clumped together in groaning piles, and outside the Borrower and the heavy guards were seemingly unconscious. The sandy haired boy saw his sister to the side, breathing heavily and awake; the ebony girl helping another girl to a standing position; and underneath him, underneath him was the chestnut boy- acting as a pillow for the crash. Quickly, Ellion scrambled up to his feet and helped the boy up, a burning feeling spreading across his face. The chestnut stood for a moment, surveying the damage, then looked at Ellion knowingly with a smirk spreading across his face.
    "Guess," the once silent chestnut said slowly, "guess you really fell for me, huh?"
    Ellion averted his eyes, flustered by the awkward pun, not sure whether to slap the boy or laugh.

Jay unsteadily climbed up to her feet, clutching her right arm. Her arm, oddly enough, did not hurt. The twisted angle it was at, and the numbness, however, said otherwise.
    The copper girl hesitantly leaned against the wall, or was it the ceiling, of the overturned cart. Looking around at her work of art, Jay satisfyingly found that not one of the soon-to-be free children were badly injured. Everyone had only as much as bruises and cuts, and most of them were handling the crash quite well for children. All except herself of course. Using the arm she was able to feel, Jay Levensque pushed off her resting place to hobble to one of the brand new exits. Dust drifted outside, turning the sunlight into a golden haze of protection. The teenager had to squint into the light while breathing heavily through her clogging nose. Beams of wood towered out of the haze, like a bad dream, and red-stained tiles bowed down beneath them.
    She knew where they were.

    The chestnut boy chuckled sheepishly when the sandy haired boy didn't respond to his brilliant joke. The blonde wasn't even looking at him and was avoiding any eye-contact. The boy's face was also a lovely pink that seemed to darken to a red with each passing silent second. Out of discomfort, the chestnut unconsciously patted his old, worn jacket for his most prized possession, only to find a hollow space where it once was. Realization flickered across the chestnut's features. The blonde, almond-eyed boy wasn't avoiding his eye contact.
He was looking at the orb-like object behind him.

A flood of memories throbbed through Jay's head as she remembered the blood of lives that were shed here. The Judgement Court.
Time seemed to not have touched the court since the execution of her parents and the rest of those who dared to question the right of the king's rule. Oddly enough, the place was gleaming, just like its name, but the dark memories brought to light in Jay's mind said otherwise. A large cloud of dust surrounding the squarish court seemed act as a barrier from the rest of the city. The wooden beams with frayed ropes used for hanging seemed the reach out of the court and grasp for the blue sky and white clouds above. Jay thought that silence here was rather deafening with only the girl's heart beat ringing in her ears, nothing like the meditating silence up on the roofs on a winter's night.
Worried that some passer by would see the destruction and call for guards in hopes of a reward, Jay frantically edged closer inside the cart and used one of the brand new peep holes to scour the area. Lucky for the copper girl, most people avoided the court like the Amnerisian Plague due to their own locked up memories. Occasionally a naïve child would amble in the wide space to play or search for uncommon insects, but most children were told stories of curses and monsters roaming the court in search of their next victim. They weren't wrong.
Dispersing herself from red memories, the copper girl stepped outside of the shambled cart to glean more information about her surroundings. A couple of curious children tried to follow her in her steps to freedom, but Jay quickly motioned them back into the familiar cart with her left hand, concerned that danger still lurked around.
Once outside the cart, the teenager had to step around a couple of unresponsive guards and a still dead silent Borrower. Many of the blue-clad guards were in clumps due to that when the cart was still moving, the guards had to hold several of the same parts of the cart as to avoid falling off. Jay snickered soundlessly as she viewed two of the guards in a hug like embrace, with one of the guards was drooling on the other. A quick look informed the girl that all the other guards were still out cold. Although Jay was unsure for how long they would stay that way.
Jay hummed softly as she hastily sifted one-handed through the guards packs. She found a lot of coins and a set of keys that had seemed to belong to the lock on the cart, but that didn't matter anymore. The girl pocketed the coins and the keys, and other items that seemed to be of value, until she found her brother's brand new knife. She would be temporarily confiscating it from him until he learned to use it properly.
One guard, to the near left of Jay, let out a low groan. Jay's eyes widened as she slowly backed away from a stirring guard. Reacting quickly, Jay gave a swift kick to the guard's head, causing the bearded man to become quiet once again. The copper girl let out a pent-up breath of relief.
The court was out in the open, with the sun rays filtering down to the rough edged, clay tiles of the ground. There were no buildings close to the piece of rubbish that had used to be an old, but sturdy, cart. Only pillars with words not worth reading, the wooden hanging posts, and unused aqueduct entrances were close by. Unfortunately for Jay, that meant no cover and no roofs for a quick escape. That also meant a lot of the under-fed scrawny kids would have to outrun fully fed, muscle-bound guards if they came to. She needed to act quick.
    The teenager ducked back into the dismal cart, with the heaviness of responsibility threatening to collapse her to her knees. She now held their flitting freedom in her aching hands. And she thought taking care of one kid was hard.

Burt hated his job.
It's fun seeing those little suckers cry!
If you want to be deaf.
Guard the little kids! It'll be easy!
Not when you have to fight off mobs.
Totally fun taking stuff from them!
If you count flying through the air and falling unconscious fun.
At least he still had his beer.

"What is this?" Ellion cautiously grabbed the pentagonal orb, observing it curiously, before the chestnut boy could react to the bird swift motions of the younger boy.
"That's a-"
"Woah!" The panicking boy was cut off from his hasty excuse when Ellion accidentally twisted the orb open. The once dulling glow of the orb intensified to a candlelight brightness, which pulsed to a random beat.
"What is this?" Ellion questioned, more to himself than the chestnut boy who was still racking his brain for a plausible explanation that wouldn't unravel their plan.
"Hello? Speedster? You there?" A pale voice projected from the orb.
The almond-eyed boy almost dropped the orb out of fright while the glow of it intensified with each sound. Trembling to recover it, the sandy-haired boy now whispered a quiet response back, his shaking hands softly cupping the mysterious object to his chest, "Who are you?"
The chestnut boy had no idea how he was going to get out of this one.

    A chorus of curses and groans could be heard from the injured guards as they were greeted by the stark reality of their situation. Disturbed dust billowed around the guards as they sat up from their stupor. Some of the guards were still asleep, like a bristly bearded man with a strange, red mark on his forehead, but most were awake, searching for their flasks that held strong doses of beer and whiskey. A couple guards found themselves in an awkward moment as they untangled themselves from a unintended embrace. They didn't seem to notice a copper girl and several children watching them carefully from the shadows. Especially not the Raven that eyed their every motion.

    "Tick tock," a birdie sang, "time is running out. Tick tock. Time to fly."

Another Author's Note: I LOVE YOU PEOPLE SO MUCH!! *sobs uncontrollably* Thank you to all the people who criticize, vote, and comment on this book that shouldn't get a second glance but did! Also thank you to the ghost readers who still continue to add views to my book even though we both know this isn't really a good book. If I could see you guys right now I would hug/tackle you guys!!!! Instead, since that isn't possible, I'm giving you all a virtual hug! (Warning: I will not let go, so if you feel like you're suffocating right now that's probably my virtual hug that has made your way to you.)