Born to Fly

Part 20

The BLAU warriors returned to the Land of Birds. With the help of the mysterious group of fighters, the Keanoans were able to win the fish land battle against the Zitonians. However, despite securing their first victory in the war, the Keanoan lands felt very uneasy about the interference from such a large group of incognito fighters. Upon the arrival of the surviving bird warriors, the BLAU held a meeting for the entire base to address the situation.

The speech that the major gave to the hundreds of warriors was a mixture of congratulating, pep-talking, and planning for the future. Then he got down to business. He explained how they were going to deal with the random fighters if they were to show up at any of the upcoming battles. The instructions to the men were clear. They were not to engage in any fighting with them unless they were given the signals or commands to do so, or for self-defense. They also were not allowed to team up with them for any reason or situation. The major concluded with a few more lines of motivation before dismissing them all.

Terias and Reni were talking to each other about their first taste of war as they walked to the dorms. They both had much to share about the chaos that they witnessed and experienced on the battlefield. The fact that Terias was there reliving the events with his friend made him feel grateful to have made it back alive with only a few minor cuts and bruises. The two of them made it about three-quarters of the way there when someone called Terias's name. He looked back and saw Sona standing a few meters away and waving at him. Terias told Reni that he would meet up with him at the dorm, and he went over to Sona.

"You came back! I'm glad to see you're okay."

"Of course I'm back. Those spineless wimps were no match for me. Did you prepare that bath like I told you to?"

"No. I wanted to make sure I wasn't wasting water."

"Ah, Sona. Have a little more faith in me. I am the next leader of the birds after all. There's no way I could let myself be killed before my reign."

"If you say so, your highness."

They smiled at each other for a moment then Terias said, "I should get some rest. I'll stop by the recovery room sometime tomorrow."

Terias turned to walk away, but Sona gently grabbed his arm.

"Terias, about that kiss . . . I'm not sure why I did it. Everything was happening so fast and I didn't know if I would see you again and I'm sorry if-"

"It's fine."

Sona was slow to respond. It seemed like she thought Terias would have more to say.

"Oh. Uh, okay. I guess I'll let you go rest now."

Terias nodded and began to walk to his dorm. When he got a few steps away, he turned around and said, "Let's go for a flight together sometime soon, when we're both free. That sound good to you?"

"Yeah. Sounds good."

And with that, Terias continued to the dorms to get some rest.

# # #

The sun was setting by the time that Mory, Rubi, and Sylo arrived at the amphibian base. Earlier, the base was calm and quiet, but by nighttime, a big party was underway. As Mory watched the energetic people having a good time, he almost forgot that they were spora. He had never imagined seeing all of those spora together celebrating so happily. Judging by the amused look on Sylo's face, he presumed that she had a similar thought. Rubi laid a hand on Sylo's shoulder.

"Come with me, Sylo. I'll take you to meet some other new members and we'll help you get settled in." Rubi turned towards Mory. "Thanks for tagging along and helping me. Go enjoy the rest of this night and make some friends while you're at it."