It's okay, Rai promised. This is Starre, she's my bondmate. The others are my family. They're not actually DF workers. I know that for a fact.
"Hi," Starre said to the kin, smiling. "Who are you?"
"My name is Yorin," the kin man said, shaking Starre's hand. "It was a blessing to meet your friend, and it is a blessing to meet you. You are escaping the tower?"
"Yes," Starre said, "and we'll find a way to take you with us."
Yorin bowed to Starre, and allowed the group to take him in the middle of their circle. "Your wish is my command," he promised.
John smiled. "Then let's get going," he said.
"Hey, these hat things have cameras in them!" Stevan said, taking off his uniform hat and messing with it. He had come up with the ingenious idea of stealing the four officer's uniforms, and he was fascinated by them. "I turned it on. Say hello, Starre!"
Starre tried her best to make a gruff face, until the two burst out laughing. Nina punched Stevan deftly in the stomach, however, and he turned it off quickly.
"What was that for?" he asked indignantly, rubbing his belly.
"Do you know where the footage from that camera goes?" Nina asked sternly. "For all we know, it's some sort of security system. Keep it off."
Stevan nodded glumly. The others checked their hat-cameras, making sure that they were all turned off. They were.
"The officers probably turned them off when they were drinking," Starre sneered.
"Aye, I've seen them," Yorin said earnestly. "They just stand there drinking and drinking, until one of them faints. Then they stop and wake the fainted up. Then they all faint themselves. That's when we try to escape."
Rai patted the man's shoulder empathically. She knew that he had seen horrible things here, and that was low on the list.
Rai took the lead as the group wandered through the corridors, looking comfortable and purposeful. Yorin put up a wonderful show of being terrified, looking around with wide eyes and trembling.
"You don't have to look so scared," Starre whispered.
"But I am," Yorin hissed back as the group turned a corner and passed some busy-looking people. "What if we're caught? What if...?"
Don't worry, Rai assured the kin man. Starre was in her school play. She's a wonderful actor.
Starre grinned, and scratched Rai's forhead. "It's good to see you again, precious," she said affectionately. Rai trilled in response, shifting her wings happily.
"Okay, guys," John said sternly, "into character." He thumped Stevan on the back, and the four began to walk briskly down the hall and out into the crowded main area.
Starre clutched Yorin and Rai, so they didn't 'escape,' or get lost, and the other three walked hurriedly behind her. Starre felt Yorin shaking in her grip, and she rubbed him with her thumb quickly. He nodded and smiled, but still trembled softly.
The group was still together when they reached the elevator, and they all stayed close as they waited for it to reach their floor. The chaos was almost overwhelming, and they all sighed with relief when the elevator arrived. They rushed forward, with Starre and Rai in the lead, and they all clutched each other as they burst into the elevator. They dropped floor by floor, huddled in the corner as people rushed in and out like a river. As soon as they got to level one, they stumbled out and rushed through the madness of the main floor and into brilliant sunlight.
**--**--**
Gana laid his head against the bars of the cage, sighing. That struggle was his last stand. He wasn't a hatchling anymore, and Kivo and Io were not far behind.
He butted the bars half-heartedly, while Kivo and Io lay unconcious in a far corner of the cell. He could no longer stop the tears from coming out of his worsening eyes. Things were even blurrier than they used to be; whether his eyesight was worse or the tears were clouding his vision, he did not know. He hoped desperately that it was the latter.
Sighing softly to himself, he knew that his fruitless struggles would do no good. He strolled resignedly over to Kivo and Io, and laid his head down on the female's shoulder.
I'm sorry, he said, never having sounded older in his life. I tried.