Work Text:
Tommy jumped, his feet leaving the floor as his fingers stretched to feathers. The knife intended for his gut clattered uselessly to the floor as his body shrunk above it. The muscles in his back strained, pulling tiny wings to gain altitude.
A foot scuffed the floor behind him and Tommy was forced into a shift, narrowly avoiding a large hand crushing hollowed bone. He spun to face this new threat, sending an elbow with the motion but his arm was caught, rough hands twisting the limb behind his back.
“Philza!” His captor shouted with eyes fixed on a flock of crows circling the sealed building. One bird, in particular, snapped its gaze onto the two of them but anyone excluding Tommy would have been unable to discern the motion.
Tommy took his chance, feeling his limbs shrink, he dove between the man’s legs leaving his captor with nothing but a few feathers in his grasp. They were coming loose on their own but that still was not ideal.
The bird heard the agent cuss as he once again took to the skies, a bright cannery amongst a swarm of black. One of the birds swerved off course, almost colliding with the significantly smaller red bird.
“Hey!” he protested through chirps and cheeps. “Watch where you’re flying old man.”
The crow’s mouth opened in a squawking laugh, a noise which was barely audible over powerful wingbeats. “How about you try to avoid losing more feathers.”
Tommy puffed up at the cawed response, a lean sending him veering toward the body of the older bird. A shadow passed over him as the crow dodged and Tommy swerved to avoid a playful nip. With one last taunting “keep up!”, he tucked his wings into his body. The wind picked up as he dove to re-engage with the chaos below.
The soldiers seemed like ants from the sky, practically climbing over each other in an attempt to swarm the building. Tommy was here with one job…
He was the distraction.
If there was one thing that Tommy was sure that he could do well, it was becoming a problem. At first, he had been told that it had been an annoyance but it had not taken his family long to realize what an asset such a talent could become in the right situation.
His first target was the man who had managed to lay a hand on him. The agent had rushed to aid a few others who were attempting to hoist a dropped battering ram. The officers who had originally held the instrument were currently occupied with a dodging swarm of claws.
Tommy pulled out of his dive, falling talons first. He hit hard, grasping the woolen material of the man’s hat and dragging it over his eyes, catching skin on the way. He felt himself grow as he hit the ground, leg hooking and dragging the blinded man to the ground.
The action attracted the attention of the surrounding officers, leaving a small ball of feathers weaving through countless attempts of swinging steel.
A large THUNK sounded as the ram once again hit the dirt and Tommy crowed in glee, his chest puffling as he once again rose above the madness.
The officer yanked the beanie from his face, displaying angry red lines down his front that were already beading blood. His face was a picture of anger and his gaze followed the little songbird as it once again joined the fray.
There was nothing but a blur of feathers and flesh dodging through the ranks of those storming the building and Quackity could do nothing but watch in awe.
Their secrets were being unburied through something as simple as a fire alarm and an open window. A gap in their security had allowed both Mockingjay and Talon inside. The building had emptied under blaring alerts only for the doors to seal behind them.
It was only upon the appearance of the flock of crows that the group had been clued into the extent of their mistake. Now they were left scrambling through vehicles that had been clearly tampered with in their desperate attempt for any scrap of equipment that could give them an edge.
Honestly, they should have designated a smoking area if it was going to cause such a security risk. Now it was far too late. Even as he made another attempt to hoist a too-heavy battering ram, he knew…
They had lost.
His efforts were immediately foiled by streaks of black as the dark cloud above continued to rain beaks and talons. He had to fight a smile with the knowledge of the cameras eying his every move.
Schlatt was going to kill him once the man learned what had occurred but like Quackity had said… They should have given him a place to smoke.
You know how it is… The stress of kidnapping and holding teenagers against their will really ups a man’s cravings for a stress reliever.
It had nothing to do with a flash of familiar wings nor the painful experiments that he had just been ordered to carry out. He had, in no way, gotten a glance at brown curls nor wavy blond. It just happened that he forgot to close the window after he was done.
The call of an eagle stilled the field but Quackity had been expecting it. He was unfazed by the seven-foot wingspan that cast a shadow on the field below. While others froze in fear, Quackity completed his performance. He threw himself against the doors, finally breaking through them.
The noise startled the rest into motion.
What they found inside was no surprise, the place was destroyed.
Every hallway looked intentionally trashed with paintings pulled off the wall and papers torn to shreds by razor-sharp claws. They had no need to cause this damage, any information that the two needed was digital. The carnage that they were witnessing was the result of pure rage and revenge.
Quackity rushed to what he knew would be empty coops, he let the facade of shock paint his features. Those evil birdcages were torn apart with bars on every side of the room and the metal was nearly warped beyond recognition.
As he fought to keep his eyes away from where he knew each camera sat, the agent allowed himself to collapse, head buried in his hand as he finally allowed himself to smile.
Tubbo and Ranboo were free.
He had done it.