The One Who Was Chained

2

For a day on end we flew, across the deep blue waters. Occasionally, I saw a shadow from the deep, but I dismissed it as nothing. It was not wise to look twice at the shadows. I carried nothing but a crossbow and simple supplies with me. We didn't stop until we reached the tower. I had chosen the one situated opposite of the island where we had made our home. Our people at least. There were once others. Creatures from legends of all sorts. Now only we remained. The others had been wiped out by mortals. Of course, not all of them were good, but when they vanished from their last safe haven, their magic was lost forever. I brushed the dark hair from my face that had slipped from my braid. And there, on the wind, was a bird. The wind tossed it with fury, it's grey feathers tousled by the storm as it struggled to stay aloft. But nothing was as it seemed here. It could be a trap. Klika, seemingly unaffected by the winds, turned towards it. I tugged on her reigns, desperately pulling her back. But she did not obey me. I guess that's what I get for picking the most energetic wyvern of the bunch. She circled it, once, twice. It had a beak with a sharp point on the end, and a streamlined shape. It was some kind of hawk, then.

"Please," A small voice cried out on the wind, "Help." I did not know who or what it was. "Please, I'm right here!" It was the hawk. A talking bird? Things just got stranger by the day around here. I extended my hand to it, Klika hovering in midair, keeping as steady as I could. The bird grabbed my hand with outstretched talons. I had underestimated how sharp they were. I now knew why falcon-tamers wore gloves . I deposited the silver hawk in my saddle bags, where it made itself at home.

"If you poop in there, I won't hesitate to throw you out." The hawk gave me a sharp glare. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. "Okay, look, I've gotten off to a rocky start. Can we do this again please?"

"Yes." It was still so strange to hear a human's voice coming from that bird. "I'm Queenie."

"I'm Mairen. Are you a hawk or a human?" I asked.

"Well, I was turned into a hawk many years ago. So, yes and no. I'm neither hawk nor human. Something in between."

"Interesting. I thought curses were outlawed a long time ago." Queenie preened her feathers.

"Well, maybe more than a few years ago." Her hazel gaze was fixed on some distant point. "Now we know each other, I suggest we find some shelter before that storm rolls in." That's what she was looking at. The ominous clouds in the distance. Duh, Mairen. What else would she have been thinking? Klika must have sensed what I was thinking, as she headed off in the direction of the nearest tower. This one was ebony, towering above the island it was situated on. By the time we landed, a drizzle had already started. But the worst was only just beginning.