Colossus By Choice: B1V20 Side Story - Wings of the Fledglings

[Book 1 Verse 20 – B1V20]
[Side Story]

“Wings of the Fledglings” – Narrated by Cerato Falc

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Okay, you ready Taum?


(Taum): Yeah, I am Cerato.


What do you already know about how we came about?


(Taum): Not much, just little tidbits second-hand. So you might as well just give the full rundown now. I won’t interrupt.


Alright, alright, let’s do this.

=

The way my ma and pa put it when I was barely more than a hatchling, it started as all things did with the various gods from the age before the universe was repopulated. I think everyone knows about how all life came to be, right? You know, the base clay that Humanity created with which the True Titans, Mothra in particular, helped to shape into all other life?


(Taum): Yeah, that’s the one.


Okay good, I don’t need to go over that one again, then.

So, Rapteaglets had a slightly different path after we emerged from that clay. Mothra took particular interest in us, as we had begun to develop wings much like her, albeit less well formed. Because of this, she took it upon herself to take us to a core world in order to help us hone our wings and truly expand our flight capabilities.

On the storm-covered planet of Hurricanado, our wings were tested in the harshest weather conditions imaginable. There were endless supercells, vortexes, and other indescribably harsh weather conditions that constantly battered against us and our rudimentary wings. The strong air currents swept through the various canyons and mountain ranges like a sea of razorblades, eroding away the rock down to the barest and strongest structures. It was in these natural formations and the few cave systems that permeated their interiors where we took shelter.

Even with the blessings of the moth goddess, training our bodies in the vortex storms of this world was no easy feat. Many of the first settlers lost their lives to these ordeals, those that survived evolved and adapted. Our bodies grew out soft but firm feathers that would keep our bodies warm while also providing a medium with which the wind would catch our wings and lift us up.

From what I recall, there are 2 explanations for why this happened.

Most of us, myself included, believe that our feathers came about as a result of our own iron will and stubbornness. The feathers were extensions of our own ability to endure and adapt, rather than gifts, that came about in imitation of the delicate yet also adamantine scales of Mothra’s own wings. In order to brave the windstorms that could throw us around like leaves on a light breeze, we forced our bodies to grow out the tools necessary to survive.

The other train of thought is that the great goddess of peace had secretly spread powder from her wings that seeped into our bodies and those of the Monsters that had evolved on the planet, granting us boons of feathers or other necessary evolutionary traits that would facilitate our survival in the harsh storm-laden environment. I’m not sure why she would ever do this, though. The followers in this theory posit that the great Mothra had deceived the Rapteaglet people into believing they had formed their own potential instead of it being granted in secret, perhaps in order to not discourage us. I don’t know, it just doesn’t seem like it’d fit our goddess who is always upfront and truthful.

Regardless of which camp you fall in, the end result was clear. With these feathers, we could better navigate the constant forceful air currents, which meant that our people could focus on strengthening our wings to truly fly through into the eye of the storm.

=

It was at this point that the Ruler of All Monsters stepped into our system and decided to take a look at Mothra’s progress with the Rapteaglet species.

She was quite impressed by how far we had come, particularly how our people had begun taking steps to strengthen the beating of the wings that sprung from our backs now that we had attained the feathers required to properly navigate the windstorms that plagued our livelihoods for much of our early existence. We were preparing to well and truly beat the wind itself under our own power, but Godzilla had proposed an additional challenge to us to verify whether we were truly ready for this endeavour.

The warrior empress tasked an Elder Dragon with this challenge, the beautiful yet deadly Storm Dragon known as Amatsu.

We knew a little about Amatsu beforehand, though only the barest bits given the Storm Dragon’s elusive nature and tendency to reside within the most fearsome cyclones. We knew that Amatsu was the master of the winds on our world, that this Elder Dragon species was partly responsible for why the planet was almost entirely covered by constant thunderstorms and shearing air currents, but there had only been scant sightings beforehand.

Now, all of a sudden, she was floating before us as per the whisper of the True Titan among True Titans. Not only did she reveal herself in full, but she had created an atmosphere completely devoid of the harsh winds and air currents that had constantly besieged our existence. For the first time ever, we felt what it was like to have a clear sky with nothing more than light clouds and a cool breeze. For early Rapteaglet kind, the feeling of the calm air without fear of rain pelting the skin like razorblades or winds that could send you spiralling across the lands for kilometres on end was intoxicating, to say the least.

This brief moment of true atmospheric clarity was a taste of what our people could receive as a gift if we were to pass Godzilla’s test of character and strength.

For an entire week, Amatsu would lay siege to our lands, homes, and citizens with endless storms of unfathomable might and fury the likes of which we’ve never seen before. While she wouldn’t seek to actively destroy us, she would also not hesitate or hold back the full force of the winds and rains she could conjure forth.

Godzilla and Mothra both offered to allow the Rapteaglets to back out of this challenge but be left with the lives we had always lived. We naturally refused and accepted without hesitation.

=

The challenge had started.

For the duration of an entire week, Amatsu bombarded the lands which we spent our lives in with a raging fury that could be seen from orbit. The rock pillars which we nested in that had held firm against everything else that the planet could throw at us were being pushed to their very limits, with many falling and bringing down countless lost nests with their destruction. The sea itself from which our stone towers jutted up from crashed upon the foundations with such relentless anger and force that it became a medium of instant death should any unfortunate souls end up falling in.

While we only had to survive this ordeal in order to be granted access to clear skies, Godzilla had given us an additional objective should we be strong and brave enough to meet it head-on. If any of us had the ability and drive to successfully repel Amatsu, the torment would be ended immediately and our boon granted. In addition to this, we would be given the natural tools necessary to become proper predators of our world that would seek out prey and advance with ambition, rather than mere scavengers that struggled everyday.

Despite the willpower of the Storm Dragon far exceeding that of even the most courageous Rapteaglet, that didn’t stop us from continually braving the currents and taking flight to try and challenge her.

Hundreds lost their lives over the course of the week, and few ever even made it past the gales to meet Amatsu. And even when they did, all fell before her awesome might.

But eventually, one youngling, barely older than you or I, Taum, made it on the 4th day. She was bruised and battered, but she remained steadfast and ready for combat as she faced down Amatsu at her home in the eye of the storm, the Sacred Pinnacle.

Here, it came down to single 1-on-1 combat between this unnamed hunter and the Elder Dragon of the storms.

The battle that ensued was fierce, far beyond measure as the nameless hunter pressed on with Sword and Shield in hand. Despite the hurricane gales that Amatsu threw at her, the unnamed champion of the Rapteaglet people managed to ride them like none other had, for she alone had developed wings strong enough to navigate even these air currents. The Storm Dragon was forced to begin throwing around tornadoes and firing jets of water that could cut through stone, but the nameless hunter held the line as she continued to attack the beast to bring it down via a thousand cuts.

Eventually, with one final blow of her shield from above, the unnamed champion completely shattered Amatsu’s horns, disrupting her control of the winds and clearing away the immediate area around the Sacred Pinnacle. With her fine precision disrupted and her body left heavily injured from the battle, Amatsu finally decided to ascend and fled her home for parts unknown.

The pride of a nameless hunter had won out.

=

With the challenge complete, Mothra stepped in and blew away the endless gale force that gripped the planet with a single wingbeat. For the first time ever in our history up until that point, the Rapteaglet species had experienced true peace and calm.

As promised, Godzilla granted all of our people the gifts of an apex predator, with talons that could both grip and pierce, sharp eyesight that could cut through even the bright glare on the water, improved feathers and wing strength to dive through the air as Amatsu did, and the intelligence to formulate strategies and attack plans where our speed and strength wouldn’t cut it alone.

After providing these boons, Mothra and Godzilla departed Hurricanado, now satisfied that their work was finished and that we Rapteaglets could seize our own destiny from now on.

And we did.

We became the masters of Hurricanado. With the seas now calm and with talons and intelligence at hand, we became expert fishers from the skies, finally taking the rich bounties that were always out of reach down below. Soon, the whole planet became a fishing ground for us due to how much of it was covered in ocean after the storms settled, leading to that becoming our primary industry even to this very day.

=

So, what did you think?


(Taum): I liked it. A very nice coming of age kind of myth, struggling through adversity.


Thanks! Papa always used to use this folk story as an example to follow. He likens us to that nameless hunter, and how even against all odds we can succeed.


(Taum): It’s a pretty good motivational mindset, that’s for sure.


Sure is. Anyways, I’ll let you sleep for now, Taum. See ya in the morning.