text: He watched the boy stare at the caged birds from the balcony he was on. The boy had been staring, wordless and clenching his jaws, at the caged birds on the roof of the opposite house. Kulak knew that the boy was thinking about freeing those birds but there was a dangerous obstacle before him. There was a grey ledge about a metre long from the balcony the boy was on and after that arose a stretch of nothingness for about three metres. Kulak shivered in glee as he saw the boy bang his fist against the hard cement. He knew that the boy had allowed anger to conquer his mind. And Kulak knew that anger could be a very strange and powerful thing in circumstances such as this. A chilly breeze flew through the area and immediately Kulak knew that the All-Father was watching from far away on a branch of his own. Odin had cast his gaze, from his perch atop Yggdrasil the World Tree, directly at the boy. He knew that the old man would be conjuring up a Rune for a blessing if the boy did what was on his mind. Kulak also felt the presence of the invisible, formless creatures that had gathered in the air around the vicinity. He knew that these were mystical beings that were indigenous to this beautiful island called Sri Lanka. Sometimes he felt their gaze on him as well but when this happened he could feel them as if they were very far away. Cheaky little fellas. Kulak slid his beak across the branch and ruffled the black feathers on his back. This was going to be an interesting day because he would have to be silent for this entire experience. The boy should not realise that he was being watched as that could change the entire line of dominoes that was about to fall. There were forces that the boy could not see or comprehend at the moment because he was blinded with the rage that was bubbling in him. Kulak also noticed that there was one more detail that needed consideration. In between the two cages was a flag that swayed in the breeze. It was the multi-coloured, striped Buddhist flag. This indicated that whoever owned the roof atop which these cages were placed were Buddhist in faith. The raven wondered how a family of humans who claimed to be Buddhists could go to the length of imprisoning birds. Caging an animal that was winged and enjoyed the gift of natural flight was heinous in his mind. After all these were his brethren, though not of his own bloodline. And then it happened. Kulak edged forward and gripped the branch a little bit tighter. The wind picked up and whistled with expectation. Odin chuckled with merry and jabbed his spear into the air. A knee emerged over the edge of the balcony and in a swift jump the boy jumped over the tiny wall. He immediately darted towards the edge of the ledge and stared across the gap. The boy licked his lips and clenched his palms into fists. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and walked a few steps back to the wall. The eyelids rose and his gaze locked itself on to the edge of the roof. And then Kulak did something he usually never does. He interfered. He flew across the thermals and landed on the roof of the cage directly in the boys line of sight. The boys eyes locked with his. The boys eyes narrowed as he looked at Kulak and his lips parted. The raven then cleaned his beak by sliding it across the metal edge of the slate of the roof and brandished both sides of his beak vigorously against its surface. He then raised his beak towards the sky and made a swallowing motion with his throat. And then Kulak immediately looked at the boy, spread his wings and returned to the shadows that sheltered within the branches on the tree from which he had alighted. The wind suddenly increased in strength and whipped around the boy flicking his hair and ruffling his clothes. Odin had gasped and placed his palm across his mouth in shock. Would the boy get it? It was a long shot. The boy breathed in once more and he grimaced, bracing against the pelting of the wind. He grunted, expelling air, and took off across the expanse of the ledge. At the very edge he threw himself forward and leaped across a stretch of potential death. His chest thudded and crashed into the edge of the fated roof and he grabbed onto a bar of iron twisting out of the cement. With both hands he hurled himself up and over, sprawled on the roof of destiny. A storey below him two children slumbered and one of them dreamt of a knight atop a horse tearing through a stream of soldiers with a spear. The boy slowly rose to his feet with a wide grin plastered across his lips. He scanned the first cage and almost immediately began pulling at the beams and strips around the edges of the roof. He pulled with care as he didn’t want to make any sound which might alert the owners of the cages. It was at this point that Kulak suddenly felt a strong, powerful force enter the vicinity. It was formless and invisible like the creatures that were watching but it was some kind of higher entity. Kulak could feel it’s watchful gaze penetrating into the boys mind and searching his intentions. This was some kind of mystical deity who had become enthralled by the actions of the boy and had now come to watch the dominoes fall. Kulak instinctively knew that this was a very ancient being. There was something about it’s aura that made Kulak feel it had been here before raven or man had even been born. It was a being that was indigenous to this island and it knew its every nook and cranny. Kulak felt the entity slide into the canopy of the tree he was on and settle into the sunlight kissed branches. With a sharp crack the straps and beams came undone and the boy slowly lifted the metal sheets that made up the roof of the cage. Sunlight filtered into the open cage and Kulak knew the birds inside were contemplating this sudden development. With a sudden rush of wings and an ecstatic beating of hearts the birds erupted out of their damaged prison and rose into the sky. The boy felt his heart soar and a nervous laugh escaped his lips. Within a few minutes he had broken open the roof of the second cage and a second exodus spilled forth into the misty blue wastes of the open sky. Kulak could hear Odin scratching his beard as the old man completed the transference of the blessing of the Rune he had prepared for the boy. One day if the boy was ever trapped in any kind of circumstance the Rune would find a way to free him. Kulak finally cawed and shook his wings as the boy let out a shout of exhilaration into the air. The wind died down. Odin looked away, content with his blessing and the invisible creatures gradually crept away. The powerful entity which had been watching from the canopy rose into the air and kulak could feel his presence slowly wane away like the setting of the sun. He cawed once more and cast his eyes towards the boy. Far away, decades from now he would have no way of realising that the rebels to his dominion over this island had on that fateful day been sleeping beneath him, dreaming of knights, death and war. *** “The birds are gone. Someone has freed them,” the father said and buried his head in his hands. He rubbed the back of his neck as worry and despair invaded his mind, destroying the delicate sense of stability he had been building over the last few years. The mother stared at the white table cloth before them, a small film of tears resting on her eyes. “Those birds were our entire livelihood. Without the money we get from selling them we have no way to feed our children,” whispered the mother. She grabbed her husbands hand and stared into his eyes, fear and uncertainty striking deep into her heart. “How will we feed them?” The father looked away unable to bear her pain. Darkness had descended and all hope was lost. They heard a crow caw from outside the window. It cawed once, twice, thrice and then with a beating of its wings it was gone.