The rest of the small procession of lookers dispelled piece by piece, until it was just the Scouts from Prime-nest, Jay, the Elder, and myself. Tane clicked her beak. “I don’t like this,” She tore her gaze from the small bird. The Elder sighed. “At least we know it’s not one of us.” Tane’s eyes … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 28)
Omoi awoke me with the normal alarms. I swished through math equations, dove through logic puzzles, and got awarded with a stream of dopamine dispersed into my neural cells that brought me slowly rising out of the bed. Then there was a knock at the door. Jay jumped awake in a flurry and opened it. … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 27)
Leaving the sacred building, studded and adorned with the markings and voices of the dead, recorded messages left hovering in server banks divorced from tide and time, coming alight with their near infinite radioactive gemstones, the birds were watching us. From the tops of building, beady eyes watched. From the distance, birds stopped their mining … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 26)
Forge-Nest stank like destruction. An old city had been there once, but the buildings had been cut in half. Pillars of old concrete and rebar grew out of the massive span of wreckage. Birds swarmed over top of it. Shadowed bird people chipped away at the concrete, sending rebar bouncing off far below. As the … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 25)
Standing in front of the old USEC compound I felt a flutter in my heart at the white stone. Trees grew out of the rubble. Inside, what remained of my old life remained. Nothing much to say about it. I’d taken the watch. Found that Isaac had stolen the lion’s share of my anomalous memories. … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 24)
The dust was starting to settle when Tane pulled herself out of cover, and I followed after the swish of her long glossy black feathers. The ground had been disturbed; trees marked by the press of many bodies, occasionally nicked with horns. “Why does the forest not extend outside of the city?” Tane shrugged. “Probably … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 23)
“And this,” Tane said. “This is where we run.” “There was another gunshot!” I squeaked. “Why was there another gunshot?” “Well,” Tane said, darting her head about through the thick wiregrass. “I’d say it’s because someone else out here is hunting.” She grabbed me by the shoulders, and shoved. A few startled steps back towards … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 22)
Without the sound of the bird’s abrasive voice, I was left with the wind whistling through the trees and the steady thump of my shoes against the ruined pavement. Great branching lines of trees I’d only heard of or seen in photographs. Lines of ancient debris. Miles of mottled kudzu clinging to life underneath of … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 21)
The scouts brought in fresh food that day from one of the distant green houses. It garnished the table like on old farmer’s market. From the depths of the deep storage, a single steak had been procured and placed on the plate in front of me. Heated. Cooked to rare, it was familiar among the … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 20)
Mostly numb, voices bubbling from crow beaks. Arguments. Shouting. The common area for Prime-Nest was a floor below the high rise entry; in a room that had once been a ball area. The remnants of a stage was shoved to one side, but the long tables, aged, cracked, repainted dozens of times, took up the … Read moreA Court For Crows (Part 19)