1.

You remember Gray Falcon.

 

2.

Saturday mornings. You watched him as you ate your bowl of cereal.

 

3.

Feathered arms and tufted chest. He was handsome. Strong.

 

4.

He and his crew crashed their ship on an unnamed planet. They lived together in the wreckage. Sometimes, they sat atop the cracked dome of the observation suite and gazed up at the pale yellow skies.

 

5.

Gray Falcon was the leader of the group. Meadowlark was his second in command. They were best friends. They’d known each other since they were boys.

 

6.

Who else was there with them? Arctic Tern, the warrior who refused to remove his armor even when he slept. And Nightjar, the sorcerer who couldn’t be trusted no matter how many good deeds he did. And then, there was Oriel with her flame-colored feathers. She was like a mother to them, wasn’t she?

 

7.

You’ll remember the episode when they fought the Dead Men. And the one where they encountered the substance known as the Featureless Clay. There was an episode near the end of the series called “The Noise in Which One Can Hear Everything.” I don’t remember much about that one. Not every episode was good.

 

8.

But I know you won’t remember the episode called “The Story of the Pit.” No one remembers that one because no one saw it. It never aired.

 

9.

Recently, however, I was given a copy of the episode. It was recorded on an old VHS tape. I can’t tell you who gave me the tape. But I’ll tell you what happens if you want to hear.

 

10.

When the episode begins, Gray Falcon and Meadowlark are patrolling the western quadrant of the Ancient Plain. They look strong together. Two best friends. Feathered and brave. They’re laughing about some story from their youth.

 

11.

There’s an odd moment early on when Meadowlark glances at Gray Falcon. You can see something in his dark eyes. Even through the glass of his silver goggles, you can see it. Some memory or a dream.

 

12.

Eventually, Gray Falcon and Meadowlark come to the very edge of the Ancient Plain. There, they encounter a feature they haven’t seen before. It’s a black pit. They stand side by side, looking down. The pit appears as if it never ends.

 

13.

Gray Falcon says he’ll climb into the pit. He’ll make sure there’s nothing that’s going to crawl out and harm them like the Dead Men or something worse. Meadowlark asks him not to go. He says the pit looks dangerous. But Gray Falcon makes a whistling sound. It’s the battle cry known as the Call of the Air. It means they have to be brave.

 

14.

Gray Falcon climbs into the pit. And Meadowlark, with his clawed hands and ruff of brown feathers, is left to sit alone on a rock. At some point, he removes his silver goggles. He wipes his eyes. There must be dust in the air.

 

15.

Later, Meadowlark puts his face in his hands.

 

16.

He remembers a long-ago thought. Something ridiculous. He used to believe he and Gray Falcon might make a house together one day. They’d find a little place at the city’s edge—a few rooms, a green yard. Their friends—Arctic Tern and Nightjar and Oriel—would visit them. At the end of the day, when their friends went home, Meadowlark and Gray Falcon would hold each other. Gray Falcon would kiss Meadowlark. He’d stroke his feathers. They’d tell each other stories long into the night.

 

17.

None of that happened. Of course, it didn’t. It had never been anything more than some fantasy. Meadowlark knows this. He’s accepted it. It was difficult for a while. But it isn’t so difficult anymore.

 

18.

Meadowlark looks toward the pit. Gray Falcon hasn’t returned. This is, of course, concerning. He realizes there might be something more to this situation. Something neither he nor Gray Falcon has considered.

 

19.

Meadowlark suddenly wonders how many years it’s been since they crashed on the planet. How old will he be when they’re finally rescued?  And what will such a rescue mean?

 

20.

He stands and moves to the edge of the pit. He grips the rim with his taloned feet. He looks down. The pit is dark. He doesn’t see Gray Falcon. But there’s something else. At least, he thinks there is. An odd shadow gazing back at him.

 

21.

“Hello?” Meadowlark says. The shadow doesn’t respond. “Did you see my friend?” The shadow only watches.

 

22.

Meadowlark steps back from the pit. He feels something in that moment. An idea he has trouble putting into words. It’s a phrase like: Something has inscribed itself on me.

 

23.

Meadowlark thinks he hears a sound in the woods at the edge of the Ancient Plain. He scans the tree line, but there’s nothing. Everything is calm.

 

24.

He looks into the pit again. The shadow is still there, gazing up at him. Meadowlark can see the figure better now. It looks something like a child. A frightened boy. The boy has set aside his bowl of cereal. He’s watching, wondering what will happen next.

 

25.

Meadowlark puts on his silver goggles. He adjusts his ruff of brown feathers. Then he goes to his rock and sits. He thinks: Something has inscribed itself on me. He can’t stop himself from thinking this. He shakes his head. He tells himself Gray Falcon will return soon. The boy in the pit doesn’t matter. Everything will be as it should be. Meadowlark is sure of this.