Serpent Encounter: Chapter 1

“Uh… Skip? Are you sure you’re up for this?” Dusty asked, looking to his mentor anxiously. The big blue harpia was gazing forwards with a troubled expression on his face. The subject of his anxiety was a massive ship: The Nullarbor. It was remarkably similar to the ship Skipper and Sparky had been stationed on so many years ago. The ship captain, however, was human, and thus his ship was hardly equipped to have Stryx as permanent members of the crew.

“I’ll be fine,” the harpia answered the orange and white hawk. Dusty glanced with uncertainty down to Sparky, who offered a brief nod before he climbed aboard. Dusty followed up the plank, curling his tail in and tucking his wings firmly against his body so as to take up as small a space as possible. Skipper, on the other hand, hardly made an effort. 

Nevertheless, the Nullarbor had disembarked just minutes later. The sea was relatively calm, which Dusty was thankful for. He peered over the edge of the ship as it moved, amused by the distorted reflection of his face. Skipper watched from his perch atop one of the masts. It could barely hold his weight, but it was far better a place to sit than having to squish himself into the smallest shape possible. Sparky, on the other hand, was perched atop Dusty’s shoulders, laughing at the rippled images along with the hawk.

He pulled his head forwards and perked his ears, however, as he spotted what looked to be the silhouettes of fish beneath the surface. The sun hit their scales just so, creating a sparkling display as they swam. “Dusty, look!” The Soluno pointed with a claw.

Dusty grinned. “Oh! I didn’t think we’d find fish so fast. You’d imagine it’d be a while with the shortage and whatnot.”

“Well, this shoal is pretty small,” Sparky commented. “When Skip and I were stationed out here, it seemed that the schools of fish would stretch for miles! This is-”

“Sparky! Dusty! Eyes up!” Skipper’s voice boomed, interrupting any and all train of thought. Dusty tensed and snapped his neck upwards to see what the harpia was referring to. To his horror, some sort of animal was snaking through the water, its back, neck, and tail moving in an eerie fashion in and out of the ocean. Shouting erupted on the Nullarbor, sending the rest of the crew into a frenzy. The beast was still several knots away, but it was moving fast… and directly towards them.

Dusty’s feathers ruffled as a strong WHOOSH came from above. At the same time, the ship rocked unnaturally. He was startled to see that Skipper had launched himself from the mast and was now circling the ship. “Dusty! We know you can race, but can you fight?” he asked. He knew the hawk had very little training in combat, but the crew needed all the help they could get to deter the approaching monster.

At first, the younger Stryx hesitated. He spun his head to the side in order to awkwardly get Sparky’s opinion. The Soluno was already nestling himself into the feathers on his back. “We need to go!” he encouraged the orange and white bird, digging one of his claws lightly into his shoulder in order to press how quickly they needed to act.

Dusty needed no further encouragement. He flung himself up onto the side of the ship, making it tilt. His wings flared out to steady himself before he leapt upwards into the air. It was hardly a graceful takeoff, but then again the Stryx had only been out to sea once - and had landed himself on a ship made for Stryx crews.

He felt Sparky’s grip tighten when he didn’t immediately gain altitude. As a result, his wingtips brushed across the surface of the ocean. Anxiety took a hold on him and he very nearly forgot to pull up. Luckily, Skipper was immediately at his side to steady him. “Dusty! Easy there,” he called, shifting one wing so that it was beneath Dusty until they were higher up.

When they were, Skipper broke off and began to assess the situation. His heart was hammering in his chest. Past events crashed through his head, making it difficult to concentrate. The sea monster was closing in and as it did the memories only grew worse. “Dusty, I need a transfer!” Sparky shouted from the hawk’s shoulders. “I need to get to Skipper!”

A mid air transfer was dangerous, but it was clear that Skipper was practically frozen in the past. Dusty flew up beside the harpia, feeling the wind from the bird’s massive wings as they pumped furiously to keep him in place. This was only making things more dangerous, but Sparky had already begun to shift to the hawk’s port side. “Get me closer!” They were still too far away. If they got any closer, Skipper would bat them out of the sky without a moment to realize.

Instead, Dusty rose above the harpia at Sparky’s command. The Soluno was guiding him with his claws, gently pulling on his feathers in order to direct him. “Okay… get me in close. I’m going to have to drop… so I need you to stay as centered as possible.”

“What if you miss?” Dusty cried out in horror, realizing that Sparky could go tumbling into the sea - right into the path of the leviathan charging towards them.

“I won’t. Just stay steady,” the tan creature assured him. Taking a breath, Dusty moved closer. Skipper’s rapid, deep wingbeats still made it difficult, but the hawk managed to get as close as possible without being hit by those massive wings. The tips of the harpia’s feathers brushed over his chest.

Sparky gave no warning when he jumped down from Dusty’s back. He dropped several feet, the tense seconds feeling painfully slow before he hit Skipper’s back. The Soluno yelped as he slid, digging his claws into Skipper’s thigh in order not to fall into the waves below. The pain momentarily snapped the harpia into reality, and after a moment of panic, he managed to assist Sparky to get on his back. However, the harpia was still clearly in distress. “You’re okay, Skip. It’s just me. These are just flashbacks. You’re safe. Breathe with me.” He began to slowly work the harpia back into a calmer state.

Dusty watched all the while, flexing his talons a few times anxiously. If they didn’t move soon, that monster was going to slam directly into the ship. He equally didn’t know what to do or what Skipper had planned. However, he was glad when he looked over and saw the distant look in Skipper’s eyes had faded.

Just a few moments later, Sparky had calmed the old ex-soldier down and brought him back to the present. However, the present was only marginally better than the past. “Dusty! Swipe at its back! Just don’t sink your talons into it!” He was speeding towards the arches of serpent as it swam through the water. Dusty was only a second behind at first, before his speed was shown to be far superior than the old harpia’s wings could carry him. The hawk extended his talons, aiming towards the beast’s back. Just as he thought he was going to claw into the serpent, the creature managed to evade the attack.

It wasn’t so lucky when it came to Skipper. Though speed was not in the cards, his strength and sheer power was formidable. The navy blue Stryx managed to slam into one of the arches near the beast’s head. Although he didn’t fully flex his talons, they sunk deep within the leathery skin and into the tender flesh below. A shrill scream could be heard as Skipper began to power stroke his way back upwards, leaving the animal bleeding.

Dusty came in once again to strike. This time, he managed - though not with his talons. His beak tore through the serpent’s scale. Although there was blood, the taste was far closer to that of fish than any red-blooded animal. He scrunched his face up in disgust, having never been a fan of the flavour sea dwelling species had.

Skipper was about to go in for another attack when the beast as a whole sunk into the water. It dove deep into the ocean, where even its silhouette was obscured. Its course was not altered, but it soon passed harmlessly beneath the Nullabor. Skipper landed upon the ship’s deck, panting hard, before bending down to allow Sparky to slide off his shoulders. Dusty wasn’t far behind.

While they’d successfully driven off the beast this time, neither Stryx nor Soluno was expecting their next encounter to be so easy.