Moth & the Wings of Kalmera: Part II

Don't Miss Out on Part I!

It took no more than a few hours for Moth to gather his things and prepare for the hunt that would take place. There were no goodbyes, no send-offs, and no words of advice. He was sure he was the only Skaerguard in living memory who had taken on such a task. He was on his own for this one.

With the crossbow strapped to his chest, a sack full of perishables, a tankard of water, and a horse beneath him, Moth set out into the Forest of Kalmera.

It was known as the all-seeing forest for its twisted pale trees were alive. They could communicate, it was said, just as easily as their branches could whip out and ensnare you. Had he mentioned that the trees here were carnivorous?

But thanks to the magical talisman that hung around his neck, the trees acted as if he wasn’t among them. It was the second thing he had received after he became a member of the Skaerguard.

The first had been a tattoo of the Skaerguard’s emblem on his right shoulder which signified to the world his status as one of their warriors. It depicted a raised fist closed around a pair of broken wings, representing the Skaerguard’s mercilessness toward non-humans who dared threaten the peace.

Moth traced the tattoo absently as he rode onwards, wondering if it was some sort of cosmic joke that it was now a pair of wings he had to hunt down to ensure that symbol of mercilessness remained intact.

. . .

Weeks passed, and there was no sign of a pair of metallic wings that Moth could find.

Maybe this was a fool’s errand, Moth thought, sighing deeply.

“Hey!” A voice suddenly shouted from the canopy above him. “You! With the black hair!”

Moth jumped in his saddle, reigning in his horse a little bit too harshly.

“Whose there?” He called, looking up at the tree branches and readying his crossbow.

And there just in front and above him crouched low on a Kalmera tree branch with a skeptical look on her face was a human girl.

Moth watched as she stood, arching her back as a pair of shiny, silver wings erupted from her back. She then glided down from her branch, landing with a soft thud on the forest floor.

This has got to be the luckiest find in Skaerguard history, Moth thought, holding back a relieved laugh.

The girl tilted her head, her black braids swaying around her. “That’s quite a fancy crossbow you have there!” she said.

Moth aimed the crossbow at the girl from the back of his horse. “This is nothing personal,” he said, watching as her silver eyes widened. “You seem like a nice girl and all, but I’m on a bit of a life-changing mission.”

“Wow!” She exclaimed, completely unaffected by the arrow aimed at her. “Are you some kind of knight?”

Moth nearly choked on the saliva he swallowed. This girl has got to be some new kind of stupid.

Moth lowered his crossbow enough so that he could look at the girl. “No, I’m a part of the Skaerguard.”

She frowned then, lines appearing under her eyes. “You don’t seem like the killing type. Are you sure you’re telling the truth?”

Just pull the trigger, Moth told himself. Get the wings. Then bring them to the freaky bird lady. That’s all I have to do.

But Moth could not raise his crossbow. This girl was very much human despite the massive silver wings rising above her leather-covered shoulders.

“What’s your name?” Moth asked, holstering his crossbow to his chest once more.

“My mama named me Raven, though sometimes I get called ‘Bird’,” she replied, shrugging. “I’m pretty sure it’s meant to be an insult.”

Moth’s lips twitched. “Well, Raven,” he said. “You wouldn’t happen to have a place for me to spend the night, would you? I’ve been traveling a long time and need a place to rest my head.”

Instantly, Raven grinned wide, clapping her dark, chestnut-colored hands together. “I do, actually! I’ve set up a camp only an hour’s walk away from here. I’d be happy to oblige you."

“Great!” Moth said, urging his horse to walk forwards. “Lead the way.”

. . .

It became apparent to Moth that Raven had been living on her own out here for quite some time.

Her camp was inside a small, concrete building with shattered windows and glowing yellow vines. Kalmera trees dug into any space they could find, their weeping leaves rustling like wind chimes. A fire had been built inside of a metal tub in the center, and clothes and supplies lay strewn across the floor.

She had a small mat for sleeping which was where she was now, quietly snoring as the sun vanished from the sky.

This is my chance. Moth leaned forward, reaching into his boot to pull out a hidden dagger.

I can make it quick and painless. She won’t even know what’s happening.

He removed the scratchy blanket he had covered himself with and quietly moved toward where Raven was sleeping, keeping his steps light. But as he came up to her side, he was once again overcome by how human she was.

She doesn’t even have scales, or claws, Moth thought, clutching his dagger tighter in his hand. She could fit in with the Skaerguard if she just hid her wings…maybe if I just remove her wings…I don’t want to kill her.

But what would that do to her? She’s going to wake up screaming in pain if I try.

The moon outside shined its light in through the open windows, reflecting off the broken pieces of glass on the floor and illuminating her peaceful face.

The Skaerguard is supposed to protect humans and crush those creatures who would wish to harm them. But Raven is no threat, Moth realized with painful clarity.

I am a threat to her.

Moth’s stomach rolled at his realization, and he lowered his dagger, taking a step back from Raven’s sleeping form.

Moth had to leave.

. . .

Moth rode off into the night, now switching to a new hunt. He was going to find the creature again.

And this time, it only took a few hours for Moth to track it down. He suspected the creature had made it easy for him.

“Ah, the young Skaerguard returns to me,” the creature purred as he rode into a large, domed structure that was barely being held up by its support beams. The creature stood perched on what seemed like a stage, with vines and roots pushing into and onto the surface of it.

“Have you brought me my wings?” It asked, its metal spikes and feathers bristling with excitement.

Moth lowered himself from his horse, not bothering to un-holster his crossbow. “No, actually I haven’t,” he said, turning his palms up at the sky to show that he was empty-handed. “I couldn’t bring them to you.”

The creature smirked, tilting her head to the side. “Was it not easy to find a winged creature for you to cut down?’

Moth shook his head, his left hand going up to brush his tattoo. “I did find one, but it-no, she…she was innocent,” Moth said, that feeling in his gut rolling around once again.

The creature’s smirk gentled, its feathers smoothing over its scaled skin. It stepped down from the platform and walked carefully over to Moth where it could stand before him just within arm’s reach.

“Would you have spared other monsters,” it asked. “If they too, were innocent?”

Moth clutched his hand over his Skaerguard tattoo and raised his head to meet the creature’s otherworldly silver eyes. “Yes,” he said. “I could not kill something that showed no ill will towards my people.”

The creature nodded thoughtfully, bringing up its right hand to brush against the feathers of her face. “You are worthy then,” it murmured.

“Worthy?” Moth echoed. “I would not consider myself to be worthy of much.”

The creature held up her hand, and there, from the corner of Moth’s eye, a door creaked open.

And Raven walked through, carrying two massive metal wings.

“R-Raven?” Moth stammered. “What are you doing here?”

Raven grinned, her own metal wings appearing just above and around her shoulders. “Sorry, Moth,” she said in a humourous manner, stopping to stand at the creature’s shoulder. “I at least wanted to get to second base before I introduced you to my mama.”

Her…mother? The creature? Moth was flabbergasted, his heart hammering in his ribcage.

I take back what I said about Raven. I’m the new kind of stupid.

Raven’s mother’s feathers ruffled as she laughed, the sound of it like a peal of bird song.

“I hope my daughter was a good host, she can be rather outspoken at times,” she said, taking the giant metal wings from her daughter’s arms. Up close like this, Moth could see that each feather was engraved with different symbols, an ancient text that Moth recognized as the First Language of the Kalmera Forest.

“You are worthy of my wings, Moth,” the creature said, her face no longer filled with ire or ill intent. “I ask that you wear them, in honor of the innocent creatures who have fallen to the Skaerguard’s mercilessness.”

“Think of it as a really big reminder,” Raven said, shrugging her shoulders as she spoke. “You can take them off whenever you like, so I suppose it’s not that big of a deal.”

Moth stared at the wings, then looked up at the creature. “What does it say? On the feathers?” He asked.

The creature smiled, holding them out to Moth so he could take them. He grunted as the weight settled into his arms, surprised by just how large they were.

“It is a re-telling of our history,” Raven’s mother said. “And it bears the names of the friends and family whom I have lost to the Skaerguard.”

Raven reached out to glide her hand over the metal feathers, smiling as she did so. “They’ve coined the nickname, the Wings of Kalmera. It’s pretty accurate.”

Moth’s hands trembled underneath the weight of the wings, but he bowed his head, clutching them to his chest where he realized he had dropped the crossbow on the floor. It was fitting to him, the tradeoff of weapon and wings.

“I was going to kill you,” Moth admitted to Raven, keeping his head bowed. “I was going to take your wings.”

Raven shrugged, waving her hand in the air dismissively. “I knew you were no killer the moment I saw you,” she said. “The Skaerguard can only teach you so much about the world.”

Raven’s mother nodded, gesturing towards Moth and the wings in his arms. “And you may carry the Wings of Kalmera however you wish. I just hope that you will extend the same mercy you showed my daughter to the other non-humans of this forest.”

Moth raised his head, hoisting the pair of wings over his shoulder. “I will, and that’s a promise,” he said.

The creature and her daughter smiled, both of them reaching forward to embrace the young Moth, much to his surprise, and delight.

. . .

Moth returned to the Skaerguard changed, both mentally and physically. Now braced upon his back were the carved metal wings he had been given by the creature, along with an adjustment to his tattoo. Instead of a clenched fist crushing a pair of wings in its grasp, it was now a closed fist with a pair of wings rising behind it.

Moth would go on to change the nature and reputation of the Skaerguard, now hunting both beast and human alike, for Moth had remembered - thanks to the weight he never removed from his back - just how cruel and monstrous humans could be.

The Skaerguard would now protect the innocent, even if they bore wings.

-

Thank you for reading this little story! I hope it entertained you or maybe even gave you something to think about. The world this story takes place in is currently having it's own novel written which you can learn more about on my website www.amandastarks.com! Simply click on PROJECTS and scroll down till you see "Chasing the Wild".

Have a wonderful day, wherever you are!