Mary flapped her wings again. They were just too cool. She had to see if she could fly. Everything else could wait.
She flapped her wings as hard as she could, but she could just not muster enough power to get very far off the ground. She could hover a bit, but it required a tremendous amount of energy, and she was about to give up hope when she got an idea. She climbed up onto a tall ledge, several feet above the ground. Her plan was to jump, and see if she could use her new wings to glide safely to the ground. She looked below the ledge, and saw that she was very high off the ground. If she was wrong, she was in for a very painful landing.
Oh, well, she thought. No risk, no reward.
She jumped off the cliff, and began to rapidly beat her wings. The air streamed past her wings, and she was rewarded with a powerful lift off the ground.
It's working, she thought excitedly. I am really flying.
She looked down and realized it was working a little too well. She was flying much higher than she had intended. But she found by angling her wings, she could easily control her altitude and maintain enough speed to remain aloft. She began to circle the large park, enjoying the solitude of the quiet night sky.
After several hours, she was not tired, but began to get a little weary of flying. She wanted to land, but realized she wasn't sure how. She was flying so fast, and she was afraid if she slowed too much she would fall from the sky. She decided to try landing in the water in the lake in the center of the park. She would get a little wet, but it should slow her safely down.
She circled the spot she intended to land several times, trying to gradually lower her altitude and slow her speed. She was in her final approach and about to hit the water when a large net was thrown around her. It brought her to a quick and painful stop.
She landed in the water, but was quickly dragged ashore by the net. She gasped for air, as she tried to empty the water from her lungs.
"You got it, Jed, " said a voice in the darkness.
"Yep, " said another.
"But what the hell is it?" said the first voice again.
Mary shook her head, and saw three bearded men in hunting gear approaching her from the shadows.
"Looks like an eagle to me. Those things are protected. Hell, they are the national bird, for God's sake. I think you are gonna get in trouble. Better let it go, Jed, " said the third man.
Mary tried to talk with the men, to explain her situation, but all that came out was a series of caws.
The second man, Jed, slammed the butt of a rifle against her head, dazing her and silencing her.
"That ain't no eagle, you old fool. You ever see an eagle that big? Or one with a tail or hind legs? Naw, this is something else. Something special, " said Jed.
"What are we gonna do with it? Eat it? Maybe stuff it and mount it, " said the first man.
Mary began to panic. She did not want to be killed and eaten by these hillbilly freaks. She struggled to free herself from the net.
"Nah, " said Jed. "Like I said, this thing is special. Ain't nobody ever seen something like this. And I reckon we can make a lot of money off of it. I know just the guy, " said Jed.
He slammed the butt of the rifle against Mary's head again, and everything faded to black.