Feathers and Eggs

Chapter Nine

His wings clipped the side of the building as he quickly tried to fly around its corner. He landed in a large garbage container that was some distance away, but was still able to faintly hear the sound of voices coming from the rooftop he had so narrowly escaped. A few minutes later, the sound of a building door opening and footsteps fading into the night overlapped Grian's harsh breathing in the bin.

He quickly climbed out, gasping for the city air and laying on the dirty alleyway pavement. He stayed that way even after he had gotten rid of the pungent odor in his lungs, reliving the close call he had experienced. I could've been shot, or worse, discovered! Mumbo... did he set me up? No no no, that's not right. He blocked me from Doc. Then... he squeezed his eyes tight, trying to remember what happened next more clearly.

Did he get shot? I didn't hear the gun. I jumped off of the side and landed here when my wing broke. They must not have seen where I went. That's so lucky. Grian finally sat up, inspecting his wings. "Huh. Not as lucky as I would like. I tore this side up pretty badly. Nothing I can't fix, though," he noted. He stood up, surveying his surroundings to completely make sure that he was not being watched. After feeling fairly safe, he began to walk down the street, trying to stay in the shadows.

Well this is a bit unnerving. I feel like I could be attacked at any moment. This must be how other people feel. I am just getting my dose of karma today, aren't I? He sulked as he continued on. I just have to make it to the sewer, and I should be able to find a way to the poultry cave. Not a minute later, he had found a way into the sewer and was about to hop in when he heard a voice behind him.

"Grian? Is that you?" Poultry Man froze, his heart automatically dropping. He stood up and turned around to step out from the shadows, facing the man beneath a street light. "Ah! Y-you're not, Grian! My mistake! You're Poultry Man, yes? Please don't hurt me," Iskall laughed nervously, slowly backing away. Grian let out a quite sigh of relief. He coughed, clearing his throat so that he could speak in a serious tone while the voice modulator in his mask made it deeper. "I am not this 'Grian' you are looking for. Hurry home, random civilian. Otherwise, I will... uh... be forced to..... throw eggs at you." Is that really all I do? It sounds so bad as a scare tactic.

Iskall, despite the situation he was in, seemed to be thinking the same thing. He began to laugh loudly, holding the street lamp to keep himself from falling over. Poultry Man approached him, doing his best not to laugh and break character. "Hahahaha! I'm so sorry, but that sounds so ridiculous! Oh my goodness! Hahaha! Ahhhhh. Oh that is hilarious. I'm sorry, Poultry Man. I couldn't help myself! 'Forced to throw eggs'? Hahaha!" Iskall began to laugh uncontrollably again. Grian couldn't help it. He began to laugh as well, and the deepness of the laugh made him and Iskall laugh harder at how funny it sounded. The two were practically dying of laughter under the street light.

At last, Grian began to calm himself down, and Iskall did the same. "Ahh. That was my mistake. I'm sorry for laughing at you. Are you still going to throw eggs at me?" He asked. Poultry Man shook his head, wiping at the area his eye would be if the mask wasn't covering it to get rid of tears. "No. It's alright. Boy was that hilarious. I haven't laughed that hard in a very long time. Thanks, Iskall." Iskall cocked his head, a confused look crossing his face. "How did you know my name?" Grian gave himself another mental facepalm for his stupid mistake. "I... know everyone in this city. Yup. I know that names of every single person alright." Iskall gave a doubtful face.

"Do you know the name of the architect overseeing the construction of the building I work at?" The man inquired, his eyepiece flashing in the light. "Of course. It is Grian." Iskall put an arm around Poultry Man, smirking. "But earlier, you sounded like you had never even heard of Grian before. You said," he paused, waiting for his eyepiece to replay the event in his head before continuing, "'I am not this Grian you are looking for'. If you already knew who Grian was, why did you say it weirdly earlier, like you were trying to act as though you didn't?"

Poultry Man pushed Iskall's arm off and crossed his arms. "I do not have to explain my behaviour to you." Out of spite, he began to imitate Iskall's accent. "'My name's Ishkall and I think I am very shmart, ja! I am not afraid of Poultry Man! I just laugh and do svedish things all day!'" Iskall took a step back, his face in utter disbelief. "Grian?! That is you! You're Poultry Man?!" Grian felt himself become nervous again. "What? I already told you I'm not Grian! I'm Poultry Man: the man in the chicken costume! Why do you keep thinking I'm Grian?" Iskall furrowed his eyebrows. "Well, I first thought it was you because the height and the outfit looked familiar. Then I realized Grian has been wearing plaid lately, so it couldn't have been."

He took a step toward Poultry Man, who was now very tense. "But Grian is the only person who makes fun of my accent. It's you, isn't it? I can't believe it!" Poultry Man tried one last time. "I am not Grian! You just have... a really funny accent, that's all! I don't mean it as a bad thing. I like it. But I'm not-" and in one quick movement, Iskall had taken the mask off and was holding it in his hand. Grian's eyes were wide, as were Iskall's. They stared at each other, taking in the situation. "Oh my god. It's actually you! I knew it! Hahaha! I knew it was you!" Grian took the opportunity to swipe his mask back from Iskall, looking around in fear of someone seeing. "All this time, YOU'VE been the one scaring people off the streets? Of course the only person who would come up with a persona like this would be you! How have I not seen it this whole time? Where did you get wings, man?"

Iskall began to inspect his outfit until Grian suddenly grabbed his arm and began running for the sewer. "I don't want to be spotted out here! Come on. Let's go." Grian quickly oppened the lid and went down. Iskall, however, hesitated at the top. He peered down at Grian who has his hands on his hips impatiently. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get down here!" Iskall held his nose. "I don't really want to Grian. Geez has this been where you've been hanging around? That's pretty disgusting." Grian rolled his eyes. "Iskall, just come down now and I'll take you to my hideout." Iskall smiled and immediately followed Grian into the sewer where the two immediately began splashing through to get to the poultry cave.

"You are right though, Iskall. This is not very pleasant. Normally I fly in here. This is gross."