Chapter 1
A (new) Bat in the Trees

It was 6:00 in the morning. That morning, just as the sun was about to rise, some of the animals that lived in the woods heard a noise coming from a tree. The went to it to see what it was.

A couple minutes later, the noise stopped and a starry korbat poked her head out. "Was that you making that noise?" a halloween cybunny asked. "Yes." the korbat said."

Why?"

I'll show you why." Then the korbat unwrapped her wings and revealed a baby korbat, who was clinging to her tightly.

Aww, he's so cute!" a ghost wocky said. "Thank you." The korbat said. "He was just born."

Congrats, by the way." A red skeith said. As the pets were leaving, the cybunny said "What are you gonna name him?" The korbat thought for a minute, then she said "...Lichoni."

That's a great name." The cybunny said as she hoped away. The korbat then looked at her little boy, sighed, and said "I wish Chipro was here to see this."

Then she flew away.

Chapter 2
The fly to the Marketplace

Mother, where are we going?" Lichoni asked his mother, Rosemary.

To the Marketplace." she replied as he followed her.

Marketplace? What's the Marketplace?"

It's a very large place with lots of shops. I always go there to buy food."

How come you never took me there before?"

You weren't big enough. But now that you're a month old you can come with me to the Marketplace."

A couple minutes later they finally made it to the Marketplace. "This place is HUGE!" Lichoni shouted. "Look at all the shops!" There weren't that many people there because it was nighttime, when korbats are most active.

Rosemary bought a Chokato Sandwich for herself and a slice of apple pie for Lichoni. While browsing the shops, Lichoni saw an adorable Korbat Plushie for sale. Rosemary bought that plushie for Lichoni, which he named Flapper.

While they were flying home Lichoni looked at Rosemary and asked "Mother, what ever happened to my father?"
She stopped, looked at me and said "Why do you ask?"

Well, it's just that, you've never told me what happened."

She looked at him, sighed, and said "It happened a while ago..."

We were flying through the woods one day. Then a vicious kougra came out of nowhere. The kougra headed straight towards me, but then your father flew towards him before he reached me. I watch as the two of them fought each other. Then your father looked towards me and said 'Fly away Rosemary!' I refused to leave him, But then he shouted 'Just Go!'"

Then what happened?"

I did what he said and flew away. A while later I went looking for him. I flew across the entire woods, but he was nowhere to be found."

Did the kougra eat him?"

Most likely. But he sacrificed himself to save me. If it weren't for him I wouldn't be alive and you wouldn't exist."

Wow"

Chapter 3
All alone:(

One day, they were on their way to the marketplace, when something happened that would change Lihoni's life. He was sixteen when it happened. Rosemary stopped in her tracks. Lichoni looked at her and asked "Mother, what's wrong?"

Shh! Be quiet!" She said. She look somewhat worried.

What is it?"

Then we heard barking. "Lupes!" Mother shouted, "They're coming!"

Then three big lupes jumped out of the bushes. "Well, well, well," the halloween lupe said "What have we here?
I don't know," the mutant lupe said "What do you think?
Hmm...They look like a pair of trespassers!" the ghost lupe growled.

The halloween lupe looked at Rosemary and said "Do you know what we do to pets who step into our territory?"

Lichoni looked at them curiously and said "What do you do?"

The halloween lupe licked his chops and said "Lets just say, were gonna invite you to our den for dinner, if you know what we mean."

Rosemary looked at Lichoni and shouted "Fly away Lichoni! Fly!"

Lichoni started to fly away, but then he looked back at Rosemary. The lupes had her cornered and the mutant lupe had stepped on her tail so she couldn't fly away. "Fly away, Lichoni!" She shouted. "Don't look back!"

But mother,"

Just Go!"

Lichoni flew as fast as his little wings could carry him. He didn't look back even once. He kept flying until he reached the edge of the haunted woods. Lichoni didn't want to believe it, but he knew it was true- his mother was gone.

Chapter 4
The Lab Ray

Lichoni felt so sad and alone. He hugged Flapper for comfort, but it still didn't make him feel better. Lichoni didn't know where else to go. He just kept wandering and wandering until he heard a noise. He turned around and then he saw a shoyru jump out of the bushes! Lichoni tried to fly away but he grabbed him and stuffed him in a potato sack! "Gotcha." he said, "That's the last one for tonight."

When Lichoni was finally let out of the sack, The shoyru put a collar on him that said "No. 451335". Then he was put in a cage. He looked around and there were more cages with neopets inside. A lot of these pets looked strange. Some looked like vegetables, others were robot pets, and there were even some made of jelly and sponge! He had no idea where he was. Lichoni looked at the cage next to him and there was a jubjub with crazy hair. He cleared his throat and asked "Excuse me, I don't know where I am. Is this the pound?" He looked at me and said "This ain't no pound, kid. This place makes the pound look like the Merry-Go-Round. This is the secrect laboratory. It's a hidden place where us pets are taken to. Freaky stuff happens here."

Freaky Stuff? What do you mean?"

Let's just say that when the scorchio in the white lab coat points the big lazer at you...RUN!! Ha, ha, ha!"

That made Lichoni feel nervous. Then he heard a voice shout "Poncho! where is the new pet?" Then a scorchio in a white lab coat walked into the room. The shoyru pointed at him and said "He's right in here." Today wasn't Lichoni's lucky day. The shoyru opened his cage and grabbed him. He was too scared to try and escape. The shoyru put Lichoni underneath the big lazer the jubjub told him about. And if that wasn't enough, the shoyru put a heavy block on his tail so he couldn't fly away! Lichoni watched nervously as the scorchio pushed some buttons and flipped some switches. Then he pulled a big switch, which made the big lazer begin charging. Lichoni's heart was beating like a drum. He tried to fly away, but he knew it was useless. Then the lazer fired a big lazer beam at him, and there was a blinding light...

When Lichoni opened his eyes, He realized his body had changed. His wings were gone, and he had these long claws. He had also grown larger. He managed to get his tail unstuck (the ray must have made him stronger), and he sprinted towards the exit. "He's getting away!" the scorchio shouted, "Grab him!" The shoyru tried to grab him, but Lichoni was too fast for him. The ray must have made him faster. He grabbed Flapper and ran out the door. On his way out he heard the crazy-haired jubjub shout "Run, little guy! And bring me some Hair Gel from the outside! I really need some!" As soon as Lichoni got out of the laboratory he had to dig underneath a fence. He made it out, and his collar got caught on the fence and it came right off.

Lichoni was lucky to escape that laboratory, but that still didn't make him feel better. His mother was killed by lupes, and he was turned into this...thing with claws. He felt so alone. I didn't know what he was and he didn't know where else to go. He was very scared.

Chapter 5
A New Home

Where should I go?" Lichoni asked himself. He looked this way and that and then he spotted a sign pointing south that said "To the Lost Desert". Lichoni decided to go in the direction the sign pointed. As soon as he got out of the woods he saw the sun for the first time. Lichoni never saw it before because korbats are nocturnal and the Haunted Woods has so many trees there's hardly any sulight. Lichoni looked and he saw what looked like a town far off in the distance. He headed in that direction until he reached the town, which was called Sakhmet. Lichoni wandered around town until he met a peophin named Peopatra. She owned a shop with lots of desert petpets. Lichoni wanted to buy one, but he didn't have any neopoints. He told her what happened, and she said "Hmm...maybe you should head to the Pound."

The Pound?" He said. "I've heard about the pound. It's where people dump pets they don't want anymore. A lot of them are sick, hungry, or both!" Peopatra smiled and said "It's not that bad. Do you know what happens to many of those pets?"

No...What?"

They get adopted by loving, caring owners who want them. If you go there, you might get adopted as well."

Umm...okay, I guess i'll go there."

Peopatra then gave him a map and some food to eat on the way there. Lichoni thanked her and then leaved the city. With the help of the map, Lichoni was able to find Neopia Central, where the pound was.

While he was in the pound, Lichoni met a green zafara. His name was dragon. While they were in the pound Lichoni told him how he ended up here. When he finished his story, he said "Gosh, that's awfull. I feel sorry for you, Lichoni." Lichoni turned towards him and said "Thanks, but I would like to know what pet I got turned into."
Dragon looked at him and said "Hmm...you look like a Bori.

A what?"

A Bori. By nature, bori are quiet, peaceful creatures who are rather timid. They originated in Terror Mountain, but can now be found all over Neopia.

Wow. Where did you read that?"

I read that here.

Cool."

Dragon and Lichoni instantly became friends. They both hoped that one day someone would adopt them. In fact, one day a young girl visited the pound to find a pet or two to adopt. And what do you know? She adopted Lichoni and Dragon! They were so happy.

They also have two foster siblings: Tosca the red xweetok, and Thylacine the blue lupe. Lichoni was a little afraid of Thylacine at first, since he had a "bad experience" with lupes. But Sarah said that Thylacine was a vegetarian and he wouldn't hurt a fly. Chapter 6
The Great Escape

Lichoni was very happy with his new family, but he couldn't help but wonder about those pets back at that laboratory. The first pet that came into his mind was that jubjub with the funny hair. He figured that he and the other lab pets should deserve to be free like him.

One night while Sarah was asleep, Dragon and Lichoni snuck out of Sarah's home to find that laboratory. Tosca and Thylacine also tagged along. "Are you sure where this place is?" Tosca asked. "After all, it is a 'secret' laboratory." "Don't worry, Tosca." Lichoni replied. "I remember exactly where it is."

Five minutes later they finally made it. They got past the guards and managed to sneak inside. Tosca looked around and said "What happened to these poor pets?" Lichoni turned toward her and said "These pets are all test subjects to a mad scorchio scientist. He zaps them with this big lazer that changes your color, species or ever gender!"

No. 451335?" a mutant techo said "Is that you? You've changed since I last saw you. I won't be needing that Hair Gel anymore because my funny hair is gone."

Hey, you're the crazy-haired jubjub!" Lichoni replied "Except you're not a jubjub anymore."

Yup, I got zapped a few days ago and got turned into this. The scorchio has gotten more harsh with his experiments. He's been making us push heavy objects to test our strength, dodge poisonous snowballs to test our reflexes, and make us run away from his vicious zomutts to test our speed. And when that's all done he puts us in these cages and the next day he zaps us with the lazer and we do it all over again."

Gosh, that's awfull. But that won't happen anymore because we came back to set you and the other pets free."

Tosca, Thylacine, Dragon and Lichoni then got to work setting the pets free. They got the keys to the cages and they each took turns using them to open cages. While they were letting them out Lichoni found a button that was labeled "Emergency Cage Unlock". He figured it must open all the cages. He pushed the button, and it did unlock all the cages! But as soon as he pushed the button, an alarm went off.

Then the scorchio scientist and his shoyru assistent appeared. The scientist didn't seem happy that his test subjects were all escaping. "Poncho! Someone is letting all our test subjects escape!" The scorchio shouted. But it wasn't just the scorchio and the shoyru- he also had his vicious petpets and the guards from outside. Tosca looked at Lichoni and said "Oh, coconuts! It's the scientist! And he brought his friends! What will we do?" He looked at the others and said "We'll have to fight them if we're gonna get out of here! Charge!!"

They battled the scorchio scientist, his assistent, his petpets and the guards. It was an easy win for them because those experiments had made the pets stronger and faster. It was too much for the scorchio and his pals, so they went out the emergency exit. As they ran away, the scientist shouted "You haven't seen the last of me!!"

Lichoni and his siblings watched happily as the lab pets all ran out of the lab, to continue their own lives somewhere else. He was happy that they all got a chance at freedom. Then they went back home before Sarah woke up. She didn't even know they were gone:D

Chapter 7
To Fly Again

Ever since he got transformed into a bori, Lichoni missed flying. When he was a korbat, he loved flying. In fact, he was rarely on solid ground. He loved the feeling of the wind blowing through his fur. Flying high enough that you could have a great view of everything below you. Oh, how he missed it so much...

Lichoni often wished that he was a korbat once more. But he liked his new bori self. He just wished there was some way for him to fly.

Then one day, Lichoni decided to take a look at the NC Mall. He saw all sorts of great clothes, trinkets and backgrounds, nothing like anything he'd seen at the marketplace. As he was about to leave, something caught his eye. It was a pair of wings, that looked as if they were made of fire. Lichoni wanted to have them. But, unfortunately, he didn't have any neocash. Unlike neopoints, neocash can be be obtained by the means of a Paypal account or a Neocash Card. Sarah didn't have either of those.

Then one day, it happened. The NC Mall started giving away 150 free neocash! that was more than enough for Lichoni to buy the pair of wings he had his eye on. He used this free neocash to buy the wings AND a striped headscarf for Dragon. He loves scarfs.

As soon as Lichoni obtained the wings, He decided to take them out for a "test flight" He started flapping them, and soon he began to lift off the ground. Soon Lichoni began to fly across Mystery Island, where he lives with Sarah. "It feels so great to fly again!" Lichoni shouted. He was overjoyed.

Chapter 8
Something Unbelieveable

One day, Lichoni decided to fly to the Haunted Woods. It's been a while since he'd been to the place where he was born. While he was flying through the woods, I encountered some old foes...

He saw a green bori who was being attacked by two lupes. But not just any lupes. They were the same ones that doomed his mother. But he noticed that there were only two. What happened to the halloween lupe?

Please, leave me alone!" the green bori cried out. Lichoni shouted at them "HEY!! Stop it!" The ghost lupe looked at him and said "Well, well, well. If is isn't the prey that got away! I'd recodnise him by the star-shaped birthmark."
He certaintly has changed since we last saw him." the mutant lupe growled.

Yes, I have changed," Lichoni replied "But I see you haven't. By the way, where's your leader?"

The ghost lupe then said "Poncho, our leader, got capture by some scorchio. He then got turned into a skunk shoyru. And since this is a "lupe" pack, he decided to work for the scorchio at let me lead the pack."

It was at this moment when he realized that the scorchio's assistant was the 'former' leader of the lupe pack. Lichoni then said to them "You're still picking on innocent neopians, just like your leader. It ends now!"

Great...what do you mean?" the mutant lupe said, confused.

It means I'm gonna defeat you!"

Lichoni decided to face his fears and battle the two lupes. The green bori also fought. They eventually defeated the lupes, and they ran away scared. That'll teach them to never mess with them again!

Thanks for saving me." the green bori said "My name is Chipro." Lichoni looked at Chipro and noticed a scar above his right eye. "Why are you staring at me?" He asked. "I was just looking at that scar," Lichoni said "Did the lupes do that?"
No, the lupes didn't do this. I got this scar a long time ago."
How?"

I wasn't always a bori. I was once a korbat. One day, I was walking through the woods with my partner. Then a vicious kougra jumped out of nowhere. I jumped at him before the kougra reached my partner. I told her to fly away, and she did. I managed to get away from the kougra, but it left me with this scar. A while later I went searching for her, but then I was captured by a scorchio. He took me to a laboratory where I got turned into this. I spent a long time in that laboratory, but I eventually escaped. As soon as I got out, the first thing that came into my mind was my partner. I went searching for her, but then I ran into those vicious lupes."

Lichoni noticed that part of the story sounded very familiar. He asked him "Um, Chipro, what color was she? And what was her name?"

Her name was Rosemary, and she was a beautiful starry korbat."

Lichoni was amazed. He shouted "That's my mom!"

She has a son?"

Yes! She also told me that my father was killed by a kougra! But he wasn't! Your my Father!"

I am?!?" Lichoni then rused towards him and hugged him. He was amazed. He couldn't believe that his father was alive.
So...How's Rosemary? Is she okay?" Chipro asked. When he heard what he said, Lichoni was afraid how he'd react to his answer. But he had to tell him. So he said "Um, she's not good...I mean, she's been better...I mean...she's...*gulp* gone."

What?!?"

She was killed by lupes, the same ones that attacked you."

Oh...I'm sorry."

I know...But she sacrificed herself to save me. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't be alive right now."

Wow."

Lichoni then went home and introduced Chipro to his friends and family. They were absolutely amazed when they told them their stories. Lichoni still goes to the Haunted Woods to visit Chipro every now and then.

The End