Copyright 1999 -- Robert Baer Jr. PROLOGUE Evern wonder what would happan if the entire world had "gone to the birds?" IT HAS, in BirdWorld! This is the continuing saga of Robin Mallory, loving wife, working mom and media exectutive. How is this young robin faring in this fast-paced modern life? We'll ask "Chipper" Birdwell, Robin's father about that subject. He ALWAYS seems to have a lot to say about his only daughter! BirdWorld - "The Heckler" Walking closer and closer to Chipper's tree, we see the old bird pecking around on the ground. He seems to be foraging around for something to eat, he just started pecking on a rotten apple when he looks up and sees us. "Hello there!" he chirps happily,"I'm trying to find my a nice juicy little worm for a snack! I SEE ONE NOW!" Chipper pecks mercilessly on the rotten apple in front of him, only to discover that the worm he spotted has escaped! "I was this close!" he yells in frustration. "You humans don't like finding worms in your apples, I don't like finding a worm SURROUNDED by an apple! Gives the worm time to hide or disappear! Oh well, perhaps I can settle for some pine nuts or berries, at least THEY don't try to run away! Speaking of rotten apples, there was a very "rotten worm" lurking around the radio station the other day! Well, more like a snake really, well, it's kinda hard to explain without telling you the whole story, so here goes: "It was just a typical day at WBIRD Radio, Carla Delmar and Wild Bill Bluejay had just finished the morning show, Edward R Sparrow gave his noon newscast with Meadowlark Gremmon finished with the sports. Robin had just started her radio show, her subject today was titled "Migration -- Is this trip really neccessary?" Carla and Wild Bill were, as they usually did during Robin's broadcast, screening the phone calls that were to be put on the air. They all should have suspected that something was wrong the minute Robin 'opened the phone lines up' and there was only one caller, someone calling themselves 'Dennis from downtown." Robin introduced the caller,"Hello, Dennis from Downtown, you're on the Robin Mallory show, what is your question or comment." The caller gruffly answered,"My question is, Robin Mallory, what kind of fools do you take us BirdWorlders for?" "Excuse me?" Robin said in complete surprise. "You heard me, Mrs Mallory!" the angry caller bellowed,"you, your husband and that idiot Thrush Limbird are the only birds who have ever been to the outside world, since then there's been visits from a large furry creature, an oversized lizard and humans toting guns! I say that you are the cause of all of this! You and your friends need to be kicked out of BirdWorld forever!" "That's an .... interesting opinion," Robin said with a shaky voice,"Let's go to our next caller and let's stay on the subject this time, OK" Robin pushed the button for the next call. "Go ahead, caller, you're on the air with..." Robin was quickly interrupted,"Hey, this is STILL Dennis from Downtown, why wont you answer my question, Robin Mallory! Maybe you and your 'trained beasts' ARE plotting to take over BirdWorld! CONFESS THE PLOT YOU WICKED FEMALE!" Robin cuts him off and answers another phone line, to her complete horror, it's the same ominious voice of 'Dennis', "ROBIN, you can't hide the truth any longer!" As the caller continued to ramble, Robin was trembling, crying in total frustration. Carla and Wild Bill were trying to figure out why there were no other calls coming in, when Carla came up with an idea! Quickly Wild Bill squibbed a handmade sign and pressed it on the window of the control booth, it read "Robin, keep this clown talking, we think he's hiding in the basement." Robin nobbed her head and Carla, Wild Bill, Thrush, Meadowlark and Edward all ran to the elavator and headed for the basement. Upon arriving there, Carla's theory was proven correct! There, in the shadows near the water heater and the furnace, was a bird in a trenchcoat and hat, sitting behind a folding table with many wires and two large laptop computers on them. The computers were jury-wired into the phone system and the mysterious heckler was wearing a head/microphone set. The heckler appeared very surprised to look up and see all the birds that had now surrounded his table. Wild Bill quickly grabbed and removed the heckler's hat. "Kenneth Starling!" everyone yelled in excitement. "Yes, it's me, Kenneth Starling! How did you birdbrains manage to find me?" "It was easy," Carla explained,"when no other phone calls were coming into the studio, I figured out that someone had to be controlling those phone lines, and the main switchbox for the entire building's telephone system is right down here!" "The only question that remains is WHY?" Meadowlark chirped. "I'll tell you why!" Kenneth answered,"that Robin Mallory RUINED my legal career! The exile of Robin and her family was to be my crowning achievement, my moment in the sun, until those stupid hunters came and made Robin and all her clonies even MORE popular! I wanted revenge! I wanted to ruin HER career!" "You crazy bird!" Edward R Sparrow yelled with unusual emotion,"if it hadn't been for the bravery of Robin, Joe, Chipper, Wild Bird and Thrush Limbird, those humans might have completely destroyed BirdWorld, and killed ALL of us birds with it! I can't believe that as brilliant as you are, you just can't understand that if Robin's huge friends hadn't have came to our rescue, BirdWorld wouldn't exist anymore! I have half a mind to turn you over my knee and give you the spanking of your life, you're acting like a hatchling!" "Stay AWAY from me, ALL of you, STAY AWAY FROM ME!" Kenneth screamed,"none of you can prove a thing, it'd be my word against yours!" "Not really, Kenny!" Wild Bill laughed. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" Kenneth roared. "Well, if I'm not mistaken, that little red light on your laptop comtrol panel means that you're transmitting, you just unwittingly confessed to ALL of our listeners, smartie!" "I've got to get out of here!" Kenneth Starliing yelled as he flew towards an open basement window. Wild Bill got there first and quickly closed the window as Kenneth flew directly into it! With a loud thud, the once proud attorney fell to the basement floor, dazed and nearly unconscience. "Wild Bird, why did you do that?" Carla asked. "Hey, the building manager told us not to leave any windows open in the wintertime, didn't he?" Wild Bill said with a sinister grin. "I'll call security, they can take this bozo to jail!" Edward R Sparrow said calmly. Later that day, Kenneth Starling was in police custody. Carla quickly re-wired the phone lines properly and Robin, although very shook up about the entire matter, continued with her show. Callers gave overwhelming support to Robin and her friends! That particular radio program was the highest rated EVER in the history of the station! So it just goes to show you that even a 'worm' like Kenneth Starling can't ruin every 'apple." Speaking of worms, I'm still hungry so I'll continue my search! Please, drop by again sometime and chat with this old bird, won't you? -------------------------------------------------------------------