I turned my head to Trinity and her mom.

"They're here," I whispered.

"Hide." instructed Trinity's mom.

I nodded and got on my hands and knees, crawling behind the couch. I had to scooch the couch forward some, but hopefully nobody would notice. I was laying on my side, and some of my wings peeked out, but I was gonna have to risk in. I pulled my bag closer to me. My hands trembled as I started biting at my nails.

"Calm down, Madelyn."

"I am calm. Fine, I'm kidding. How the heck am I supposed to be calm? What is this calm you speak of?"

"Just try to relax."

"How am I supposed to relax? People are invading!"

"Be ca..."

She was cut off by the sound of arguing.

"Hand me the taser, David!" I heard a voice shout.

Then, in a loud whisper, Trinity's mom said something. "Behind the dresser, there's an escape route. You two go; I'll fight them off."

"But they have a taser." I informed "You can't just go out there!'

"I'm taking a risk for your safety. Plus, I'm strong enough to fight them off. Grab your things and go!"

I crawled out from behind the couch and moved the dresser aside. Well, with the help of Trinity's mom.

"Go. And Madelyn, there's a first aid kit with medicines, ointments, and bandages in it. Be sure to take care of your wing. I'll catch up with you two."

Trinity and I both nodded, and she went into the tunnel first. I followed her, and darkness encased us as Trinity's mom put the dresser back in its original position.

I waited, listening for the sound of the men. All was quiet until a voice broke the silence.

"Where are the girls with wings?"

I knew that it was Trinity's mom who spoke next. "I'll never tell!"

"Oh, but that implies that you know, doesn't it? Surely a pretty woman like yourself would hate to be tased, isn't that right? Tell me where the girls are."

"Your empty threats don't frighten me."

"Oh, but we both know that's a lie."

Silence.

"Did they kill her?"

"I doubt that. They'd be facing prison if they did. I think that they merely tased her."

"Merely?!"

Trinity tapped on my shoulder. "We need to go. My mom will catch up with us. But we'll be the ones captured if we don't make like a bun truck."

Oh, I had heard that joke before.

"And haul buns?"

"Sure. Now, we need to go."

I nodded, and grabbed the first aid kit. I continued to listen, hearing threats and defenses. The material of the tunnel seemed to nip at my skin, and as I dragged my knees, they gained scrapes. Minor ones, though, not ones as bad as the one on my wing.

"Are you sure your mom is gonna be alright?" I asked, concerned.

"Yeah, she'll be fine. When I was nine, we lived in an area that gained a lot of hunters. But we're still safe and living. She protected us well. This is no different."

"Alright, as long as your mom is safe. You're lucky to have parents who love you. My parents shot me with an arrow."

"Keep it down." I heard Trinity instruct me "Do you want them to hear us?"

"No. I'll be quiet."

The tunnel went down at an angle, and everything remained dark. A shiver ran up my spine, cold wind rippling through the tunnel. I looked behind myself, seeing a face.

"Run!" I shouted "He found the tunnel!"

I moved as fast as I could, adrenaline moving through my veins. I twitched with fear and tension, and I could hear the sound of the men pouring into the tunnel. I need to go faster!

Trinity ran ahead of me, her fear apparent. She was even faster than I was, and I tried to match her pace. Cold air made me shiver, and I honestly didn't care. I looked behind myself to see a man holding something, and I could see the outline of something. He was aiming it at me. It was a gun.

"Run!" I shouted, stress tugging at me like a fish hook. Nervousness made my breath short, and I trembled in fear. I pulled my wings in closer to myself. I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, and hope overtook me.

Then, something horrible happened. Well, almost. Confused? I'll get back to the explaining.

I heard the whooshing of something behind me, and I looked. It was a dart - a tranquilizer dart. I couldn't escape; I was going to be captured!

A blast of pain overtook me, and my skin seemed to burn. I closed my eyes tight. Pain rippled through me in waves of torture. I let out a screech, my fists clenching. Then, the pain went. I felt smaller, but all pain gone.

I opened my eyes, looking at myself. I was a hummingbird. I was coated in colorful feathers, and the wounds on my wing weren't there anymore.

"Tweety, what did you do?"

"One, don't call me Tweety. It's Ashlea. And two, I took over to save you. I knew it would hurt you - it hurt me too - but I had to do it. Now, fly out of here."

"What about Trinity?"

"She's fine. If you hadn't noticed, she's almost out. However, those men are trying to shoot at you. Fly the heck out of here!"

I leaped up, trying to remember what Ashlea had taught me. I beat my wings as quick as I could. Flap, flap, flap. I went forward, fast. Faster than they could aim. They weren't gonna hit me anytime soon. I leaned forward, moving forward. I was in an alley, with boxes and soda cans strewn about. A stray ray of light shone in.

I watched as Trinity shoved several boxes over the exit of the tunnel.

"Madelyn, did you shift?" she asked "You weren't supposed to."

"You can talk to her, you know."

"Yes, I did. And I know that; the canary spirit - a.k.a Ashlea - did it."

"Alright. Mom told me about a city of shifters in the forest. We'll stay here until you're well enough to to travel."

"Or you could carry my bag and we could fly there." I suggested.

"I doubt I could carry it. Now unshift, and we'll stay here until you're good enough to travel."

I shifted back, the wound no longer there.

"Ashlea, explain, now."

"Shifters have gifts. Some have fire control, some have control over auras. I believe you have control over healing."

A/N- More things are being uncovered. What's gonna happen next?

Also, 318 reads in 16 days. Dang, that was fast. Thank you so much. First person to write a comment over 500 characters gets a dedication.

I've gotta go, don't forget to comment, vote, and share. I'll (hopefully) see ya in the comments! Bye for now.