Darkwing – by kenneth oppel

Dusk is a chiropter, born with furless sails (wings). He lived about sixtyfive million years ago. All chiropters (flying squirrels) have fur on their sails, stretched between their arms and bodies. Chiropters don’t fly up, they glide down between branches of the sequoia. Dusk kept his flying a secret, but in a tight colony the secret is out. Dusk’s parents explained ‘ The Pact’ on the mainland twenty years ago. The Pact was that all beasts be friends and take part in destroying the saurians’ (dinosaurs) eggs, so they can wipe out the saurians.

Carnassail, who is a felid (large cat), gets discharged from his prowl for breaking the pact by eating other beasts. Gory descriptions eating other beasts makes you gag. Dusk, and his sister, Sylph, sneaked off one night, following a group of adults on an expedition. Dusk discovered his echovision, a trait his mom kept secret. Carnassail and his prowl finds a way to the island. Dusk used his night vision and saw the tracks. He flew back and warned his father. Icaron said the felids are friends.

A felid massacre killed Dusk’s mother. Dusk helped his dad lead the colony back to the mainland by gliding on hot thermals. But when the mainland colony found out that Icaron’s colony were the ones who didn’t agree to the pact, they were sent away. Dusk’s colony endured three major attacks from different hunters they’ve not encountered before. The first attack was by ten foot tall, flightless bird called a diatryma. Carnassail became friends with hyaenodons (prehistoric wolves or dogs).

The second attack was from poisonous rat-like creatures called the soricids. Then Carnassail attacked Dusk and Sylph into a saurian nest full of eggs and egg shells. A baby saurian attacked Carnassail. Dusk and Sylph escaped the cave. Equids (small horses) helped by carrying Sylph. Dusk flew to the pine forests in the north. Dusk, and his colony, found new nesting trees. Dusk is welcomed into a new colony of rejects, who had furless wings and echovision just as he.