The rattling of bars was the first thing that Sage noticed as she came around. Her head still felt foggy, but she was able to take in her surroundings. She was in a small crate lined with towels. Taking a deep breath, she could smell other meerkats somewhere close by. None smelled familiar, but they all smelled of fear and confusion. This made her uneasy, and she moved a towel around to make it more comfortable.
Her thoughts inevitably turned to her family. She had lived most of her life in a pen with her twin brothers Rex and Dex, two unstoppable tornadoes of mayhem; Fathom, her gentle but stern mother; Rocky, her critical father; and Little Whisp, she had only been a week old when humans had taken Sage away. They had taken Sage to a cage that had been cold and unfriendly, despite the humans’ attempts to make see more like home. She wasn't sure how long she'd been there, but it didn't matter.
Any amount of time there was too long. The last thing she could recall from that place was a human reaching for her and a sting on her shoulder.
Sage was jerked out of her thoughts and thrown into the side of the container. Her whole world was turning upside down as she was tossed mercilessly. She caught a glimpse of light before blacking out.
***
Torch's head throbbed as he opened his eyes. He shut them almost immediately, because of the blinding light. Slowly, he opened his eyes again, allowing them to grow used to the light. When he was finally able to look around, his heart swelled with joy. He hadn't seen the sun for who knows how many moons.
He had been born in one of the largest meerkat mobs in Africa. He didn't remember it much because some nosnouts had taken him during his first time out of the den. They had put him in a small box for several days and finally handed him over to another nosnout. He had spent most of his life with that nosnout. Life there had started out good, when he was a cute kit, but as he grew older, he was forgotten more and more often, until he had totally forgotten without any food or water.
He had been close to dying when more nosnouts had taken him away and nursed him to health. They had made him sleep and put him in a small container. He had awakened to a similar situation as when he had been removed from his family. He had panicked and tried to escape but only managed to tire himself out. There had been a deafening sound, and he had banged around in his prison. A blow to the head had knocked him out.
Which brought him to where he was now. He could see a giant metal beast lying on its side, and a bunch of cages scattered around it. His first instinct was to run, but he could smell other meerkats nearby. He crept over to a cage that must have broken open by the impact. A meerkat lay inside. From the smell, Torch could tell that the meerkat wouldn't ever wake again. He slowly made his way through the debris, finding a pawful of survivors. There were seven survivors in all, five females and two males, including himself.
The all looked at each other wearily, even though they knew that if they wanted to survive, they would have to trust each other. As the sun hovered directly above them, the small band limped away from the silent wreck. Torch hoped they could find shelter before nightfall. He still remembered stories of night predators he had heard as a kit.
***
The sun dipped toward the horizon, filling the surrounding sky with brilliant color. The prairie dog, Maka, watched the sunset every evening for it reminded him of his mother, Sanuye. This had always been her favorite time of the day.
“Tell me a story,” Tocho, his younger cousin, asked like he did most nights.
“Which story?” Maka inquired, although he knew very well which one his cousin wanted.
“The one about the firebird.”
He must have told Tocho that story a hundred times already, but he didn't mind. It reminded him of his mother for she told him it often. “The story starts in the beginning of the world. Earthgiver was alone in the darkness of nothing. He spoke into the darkness and made everything with only a few words. Now all the creatures he had made were happy, living with each other in complete harmony, exce-”
“Even the eagles and the prairie dogs?”
“Yes, Tocho, even the eagles and the prairie dogs,” Maka answered patiently, like his mother had done with him.
“How about the ferrets and the coyotes? Did they live in harmony with the prairie dogs?”
“Yes everyone got along and was happy, except the firebird. At the time the firebird was just an ordinary eagle. The only difference was that he wanted to do something beneficial for the other creatures.”
“What does bin-ee-fish-all mean?”
“It means helpful. The eagle wanted to be helpful, so he told Earth giver how he felt. Earth, being kin d and understanding, gave the eagle fire and told him that it would be his job to light up the land, and happily, the eagle agreed as he gathered the fire into a ball, which caused his feathers to catch on fire and burn permanently. He took off with the fireball in his talons, ready to share his gift with the world.
As he made his way across the sky, the manypelts notice and became jealous. 'Why weren't we given a gift?' they grumbled to each other. The manypelts sent their best hunter to go after the bird to retrieve the fire for themselves. The eagle flew long and hard to escape the hunter, but the hunter still caught up. The manypelt shot sharp sticks at him, and the eagle was hit twice. First in the wing. Then in the chest. As he fell, his blood splattered the sky. The manypelts got what they wanted, but the other creatures mourned for the eagle.”
“Did the prairie dogs mourn, if so why? Don't eagles eat prairie dogs?”
“Eagles do eat prairie dogs, but this one didn't. The prairie dogs mourned because the eagle died to give them light.”
“How d-”
“Do you want me to finish the story?” Tocho nodded. “Then stop interrupting me, alright?” Another nod. “Good, as I was saying, they mourned for the eagle and honored him by calling him firebird.
Earthgiver saw and had compassion for them and the firebird. He allowed the firebird to be reborn and, as a punishment to the manypelt, forced him to hunt the fire bird for all eternity. The color in the morning is the sky celebrating the birth of the firebird, and the color we see now is the firebird's blood. The manypelt is invisible in the light of the fireball, which we now call the sun, but can be seen in the night sky, as he waits for the firebird's rebirth so the hunt can begin anew.”
Tocho was silent for a few moments before inevitably asking another question. “But isn't it a punishment for the firebird to be hunted by the many pelt?”
“Earthgiver is wise and knows that the noble firebird considers it an honor to die while providing for others. Plus, the firebird has the comfort of knowing he will come back to do what he loves.”
Tocho yawned, “And the hunter?”
“He is forced to hunt, and no one is happy if he is forced to do something, even if they lobe doing it,” Maka answered as he nudged Tocho toward the hole that Maka shared with his cousin and aunt since his mother's death.
“I'm glad Earthgiver punished the manypelt. Night, Maka.”
“Good night, Tocho.”
Maka watched Tocho head for the hole. Tocho was about to enter the tunnel, when he glanced back at Maka. His eyes grew large. “Maka, there's some strange creatures behind you.”
Maka turned and saw seven weasel-like animals heading straight toward them. He tensed, ready to give the warning if needed. As they came closer, he could see that they were all injured in some way.
“They need help,” Tocho said.” I want to be like the firebird.” With that, he took off toward the creatures.
“Tocho, stop! The might be dangerous!” But his cousin didn't listen and just kept on racing toward them. Maka sighed and chased after Tocho.
He saw that when his cousin approached the creatures, they stopped and sniffed, weary of the little bundle of fur.
“Don't worry,” he heard Tocho say softly to the creatures, “I just want to help you. My name's Tocho.”
Maka could see the front creature reply, but it was to quiet for him to hear it.
“It's alright, Maka. They're friendly. They say they're called meerkats and are here because of nosnouts.”
“Nosnouts?”
“Manypelts, I think. Apparently, the manypelts trapped them in a huge metal beast, but the beast tossed them out and died. It killed a bunch of other meerkats in the process.”
“D-do you need somewhere to stay?” Maka found himself feeling sorry for the meerkats.
The lead meerkat blinked slowly before answering, “If it isn't too much trouble. I'm called Torch.”
“I'm Maka, and I can bring you to some deserted tunnels. You'll have to be careful though. Once we prairie dogs move out, other creatures move in. Creatures like owls, snakes, and scorpions.”
One meerkat mumbled, “I hope there are some scorpions.”
A smaller meerkat, a female, had moved next to Torch, “Thank you for your help.”
Maka dreaded what the other prairie dogs would do when the found out in the morning, but there was no backing out now. Tocho would make sure of that. Maka could only hope the other prairie dogs were as open to newcomers as Tocho.
Her thoughts inevitably turned to her family. She had lived most of her life in a pen with her twin brothers Rex and Dex, two unstoppable tornadoes of mayhem; Fathom, her gentle but stern mother; Rocky, her critical father; and Little Whisp, she had only been a week old when humans had taken Sage away. They had taken Sage to a cage that had been cold and unfriendly, despite the humans’ attempts to make see more like home. She wasn't sure how long she'd been there, but it didn't matter.
Any amount of time there was too long. The last thing she could recall from that place was a human reaching for her and a sting on her shoulder.
Sage was jerked out of her thoughts and thrown into the side of the container. Her whole world was turning upside down as she was tossed mercilessly. She caught a glimpse of light before blacking out.
***
Torch's head throbbed as he opened his eyes. He shut them almost immediately, because of the blinding light. Slowly, he opened his eyes again, allowing them to grow used to the light. When he was finally able to look around, his heart swelled with joy. He hadn't seen the sun for who knows how many moons.
He had been born in one of the largest meerkat mobs in Africa. He didn't remember it much because some nosnouts had taken him during his first time out of the den. They had put him in a small box for several days and finally handed him over to another nosnout. He had spent most of his life with that nosnout. Life there had started out good, when he was a cute kit, but as he grew older, he was forgotten more and more often, until he had totally forgotten without any food or water.
He had been close to dying when more nosnouts had taken him away and nursed him to health. They had made him sleep and put him in a small container. He had awakened to a similar situation as when he had been removed from his family. He had panicked and tried to escape but only managed to tire himself out. There had been a deafening sound, and he had banged around in his prison. A blow to the head had knocked him out.
Which brought him to where he was now. He could see a giant metal beast lying on its side, and a bunch of cages scattered around it. His first instinct was to run, but he could smell other meerkats nearby. He crept over to a cage that must have broken open by the impact. A meerkat lay inside. From the smell, Torch could tell that the meerkat wouldn't ever wake again. He slowly made his way through the debris, finding a pawful of survivors. There were seven survivors in all, five females and two males, including himself.
The all looked at each other wearily, even though they knew that if they wanted to survive, they would have to trust each other. As the sun hovered directly above them, the small band limped away from the silent wreck. Torch hoped they could find shelter before nightfall. He still remembered stories of night predators he had heard as a kit.
***
The sun dipped toward the horizon, filling the surrounding sky with brilliant color. The prairie dog, Maka, watched the sunset every evening for it reminded him of his mother, Sanuye. This had always been her favorite time of the day.
“Tell me a story,” Tocho, his younger cousin, asked like he did most nights.
“Which story?” Maka inquired, although he knew very well which one his cousin wanted.
“The one about the firebird.”
He must have told Tocho that story a hundred times already, but he didn't mind. It reminded him of his mother for she told him it often. “The story starts in the beginning of the world. Earthgiver was alone in the darkness of nothing. He spoke into the darkness and made everything with only a few words. Now all the creatures he had made were happy, living with each other in complete harmony, exce-”
“Even the eagles and the prairie dogs?”
“Yes, Tocho, even the eagles and the prairie dogs,” Maka answered patiently, like his mother had done with him.
“How about the ferrets and the coyotes? Did they live in harmony with the prairie dogs?”
“Yes everyone got along and was happy, except the firebird. At the time the firebird was just an ordinary eagle. The only difference was that he wanted to do something beneficial for the other creatures.”
“What does bin-ee-fish-all mean?”
“It means helpful. The eagle wanted to be helpful, so he told Earth giver how he felt. Earth, being kin d and understanding, gave the eagle fire and told him that it would be his job to light up the land, and happily, the eagle agreed as he gathered the fire into a ball, which caused his feathers to catch on fire and burn permanently. He took off with the fireball in his talons, ready to share his gift with the world.
As he made his way across the sky, the manypelts notice and became jealous. 'Why weren't we given a gift?' they grumbled to each other. The manypelts sent their best hunter to go after the bird to retrieve the fire for themselves. The eagle flew long and hard to escape the hunter, but the hunter still caught up. The manypelt shot sharp sticks at him, and the eagle was hit twice. First in the wing. Then in the chest. As he fell, his blood splattered the sky. The manypelts got what they wanted, but the other creatures mourned for the eagle.”
“Did the prairie dogs mourn, if so why? Don't eagles eat prairie dogs?”
“Eagles do eat prairie dogs, but this one didn't. The prairie dogs mourned because the eagle died to give them light.”
“How d-”
“Do you want me to finish the story?” Tocho nodded. “Then stop interrupting me, alright?” Another nod. “Good, as I was saying, they mourned for the eagle and honored him by calling him firebird.
Earthgiver saw and had compassion for them and the firebird. He allowed the firebird to be reborn and, as a punishment to the manypelt, forced him to hunt the fire bird for all eternity. The color in the morning is the sky celebrating the birth of the firebird, and the color we see now is the firebird's blood. The manypelt is invisible in the light of the fireball, which we now call the sun, but can be seen in the night sky, as he waits for the firebird's rebirth so the hunt can begin anew.”
Tocho was silent for a few moments before inevitably asking another question. “But isn't it a punishment for the firebird to be hunted by the many pelt?”
“Earthgiver is wise and knows that the noble firebird considers it an honor to die while providing for others. Plus, the firebird has the comfort of knowing he will come back to do what he loves.”
Tocho yawned, “And the hunter?”
“He is forced to hunt, and no one is happy if he is forced to do something, even if they lobe doing it,” Maka answered as he nudged Tocho toward the hole that Maka shared with his cousin and aunt since his mother's death.
“I'm glad Earthgiver punished the manypelt. Night, Maka.”
“Good night, Tocho.”
Maka watched Tocho head for the hole. Tocho was about to enter the tunnel, when he glanced back at Maka. His eyes grew large. “Maka, there's some strange creatures behind you.”
Maka turned and saw seven weasel-like animals heading straight toward them. He tensed, ready to give the warning if needed. As they came closer, he could see that they were all injured in some way.
“They need help,” Tocho said.” I want to be like the firebird.” With that, he took off toward the creatures.
“Tocho, stop! The might be dangerous!” But his cousin didn't listen and just kept on racing toward them. Maka sighed and chased after Tocho.
He saw that when his cousin approached the creatures, they stopped and sniffed, weary of the little bundle of fur.
“Don't worry,” he heard Tocho say softly to the creatures, “I just want to help you. My name's Tocho.”
Maka could see the front creature reply, but it was to quiet for him to hear it.
“It's alright, Maka. They're friendly. They say they're called meerkats and are here because of nosnouts.”
“Nosnouts?”
“Manypelts, I think. Apparently, the manypelts trapped them in a huge metal beast, but the beast tossed them out and died. It killed a bunch of other meerkats in the process.”
“D-do you need somewhere to stay?” Maka found himself feeling sorry for the meerkats.
The lead meerkat blinked slowly before answering, “If it isn't too much trouble. I'm called Torch.”
“I'm Maka, and I can bring you to some deserted tunnels. You'll have to be careful though. Once we prairie dogs move out, other creatures move in. Creatures like owls, snakes, and scorpions.”
One meerkat mumbled, “I hope there are some scorpions.”
A smaller meerkat, a female, had moved next to Torch, “Thank you for your help.”
Maka dreaded what the other prairie dogs would do when the found out in the morning, but there was no backing out now. Tocho would make sure of that. Maka could only hope the other prairie dogs were as open to newcomers as Tocho.