Life in Allspark Wells

by The FraudulentBrit

Scarlett Marbles

As the moon cast its light on the town of Allspark Wells, Marble Pie was getting ready for bed. The young geologist had taken a shower, changed into her pajamas, and let her hair down as she stretched and let out a great yawn. Taking a deep breath, she glanced at her reflection in the mirror as she said to herself, “It’s been quite a long day, hasn’t it?” Her eyes had faint but noticeable circles under them, a clear sign that she was ready to throw in the towel for the night.

Before she could give her reflection an answer, Marble was distracted by the sound of a scratchy and uncanny voice calling out, “Happy! Happy!” Turning to see who it was, the young girl found herself locking eyes with a scarlet macaw. Walking up to the crimson avian, Marble extended her hand as she asked, “Sounds like we’ve both had a pretty eventful day, haven’t we?” She received her answer when the macaw extended its head towards her hand and made a sound that was indistinguishable from someone making a kissing sound.

Giggling, Marble couldn’t help but remark, “Couldn’t put it better myself.” She then tried to pick the parrot up, only for the macaw to back up and squawk, “No thank you.” Pausing upon hearing this, the gray girl apologized, “Oh. Sorry about that.” She then asked, “So, if you can talk, can you tell me why you were alone in the street?” The macaw didn’t vocally answer, instead choosing to simply shake its head. Growing concerned, Marble continued, “You don’t remember? Or you don’t want to talk about it?” Once again, the scarlet parrot simply shook its head, this time letting out a dejected growl.

Letting out a gentle yawn, Marble finished, “Well, I’m starting to feel drowsy, so I think we can continue our little chat in the morning, ok?” As the parrot nodded, the gray girl made her way to the other end of her bedroom and presented a large cooking pot as she explained, “We didn’t anticipate having you around, so we don’t have any bird cages. Hopefully, you won’t mind this for the night.”

As she said this, however, the macaw shook its head as it defiantly replied, “No cages. No cages.” The stern and adamant way it said this struck Marble, reminding her of the way she’d stand up to her dad whenever he tried to make her wear or do anything uncomfortable. Taking note of this, the gray girl reassured her new friend, “Don’t worry. It’s not a cage. If you want, you can climb right out.” She demonstrated her point by taking her stuffed triceratops and putting it in the pot, only to pull it out again to prove her point.

Seeing this, the parrot flapped down to the pot and climbed in, but not before looking back up to Marble and asking, “No trick?” Bending down to look the parrot in its eyes, Marble reassured it, “It’s not a trick.” The macaw flapped its wings and made another kissing sound, something the gray geologist figured was a gesture of affection.

Making her way to the bedroom’s light switch, Marble bade the parrot a gentle, “Sleep tight little buddy. See you in the morning.” The macaw screeched out a final, “Nighty night.” Smiling, the gray girl switched the light off before making her way back to her bed and tucking herself under the covers, hopeful she could get a good night’s sleep.

As the sun began to rise above the town of Allspark Wells, Marble began to stir from her slumber, only to realize that there was something surprisingly heavy on her chest that wasn’t there when she fell asleep the night before. Groaning as she began to shake away the last of her sleepiness, the young girl asked herself, “Ugh, did I cuddle with that weighted teddy bear again?” Before she could fully awaken herself, she received her answer in the form of a familiar voice cawing, “Hello there.”

Blinking, Marble found herself staring eye to eye with a very familiar scarlet macaw.

The young geologist was caught off guard by the parrot’s presence and found herself rising up and backing up against her bedframe as she exclaimed, “Gah! What are you doing here?” The macaw, for its part, flapped its wings as it leapt from Marble’s chest and landed on her mattress. Once she caught her breath, the gray girl remarked, “You startled me. I hope you can forgive me.” The crimson parrot gave its answer in the form of the kissing sound it had made the previous night, leading Marble to reply, “I take that as a yes.”

It was only at this moment that Marble noticed that her bedroom was consumed by an unfamiliar and unpleasant odor. Sniffing the air, the young geologist remarked, “What’s that smell? Reminds me of….” Before she could finish, Marble had an idea. ‘Wait a minute.’ She thought to herself. ‘The parrot is an animal like me, and animals need to relieve themselves with….’ It was at this moment that Marble realized what the scent that plagued her was.

“Eww.” The gray girl groaned as she rose from her bed. “Of course they’d relieve themselves in here.” Rubbing her temple, Marble asked herself, “Ok, where did they do it?”

At that moment, Beachcomber’s voice rang out, “Having trouble there little lady?” Turning to her bedroom door, Marble found her blue mentor leaning against the frame as he smirked, “That’s the thing with pets. They often have little accidents, inconveniencing you at the most inopportune moments.” As he said this, the older geologist gave a cocky smirk, leading Marble to suspect he already knew the parrot had “relieved” itself.

Marble rolled her eyes as she groaned, “I know pets have accidents.” She then knelt down to the macaw as she reassured it, “It’s not your fault.” To her surprise, the red parrot affectionately began to bite on her nose, something Marble quickly realized was a gesture of affection. Smiling, the gray girl asked, “So, where are the cleaning supplies?”

Surprised by his protégé’s maturity, Beachcomber let out a gentle chuckle as he replied, “In the closet.” He then began to leave as he continued, “I’ll start making breakfast.” As he left, Marble nodded as she replied, “Ok.”

Once she finished cleaning up the mess, Marble changed into her attire for the day; a dark gray sleeveless turtleneck, a gray and black plaid skirt, black boots, and her beloved black leather jacket. As she fastened a simple black choker around her neck, the gray girl looked at her reflection as she remarked, “I do look good in monochrome.”

To her surprise, the scarlet macaw trotted up to her as it squawked, “Pretty! Pretty!” Marble couldn’t help but smile as she replied, “Thank you kindly little one.” Bending down, the young geologist asked, “You wanna come up?” The macaw let out an enthusiastic squawk as it climbed onto her arm and perched itself on her shoulder. Glancing at her reflection, Marble couldn’t help but notice the contrast of her gray and black monochrome to the parrot’s bright red with hints of yellow and blue. Despite their visual differences, the young geologist couldn’t help but remark, “Aren’t we the odd couple?”

The cute moment was interrupted by Beachcomber calling out, “You finish cleaning up that mess yet?” Turning to the bedroom door, Marble replied, “I think you already know I did.” The older geologist let out a chuckle as he said, “Well, breakfast is ready.”

Entering the kitchen with the parrot perched on her shoulder, Marble asked, “So Mr. Beachcomber, you said that we were gonna go see someone called….” As she sat down at the table, Beachcomber poured a glass of orange juice as he answered, “Airazor. Her name is Airazor.” He then continued, “I looked her up after you went to bed last night. Apparently, she’s one of the best bird experts this side of the country.”

As she fed the parrot an Apple slice, Marble replied, “That’s great. Hopefully she’ll be able to help our little friend here.” She then turned to the macaw as she continued, “And maybe she’ll provide you a good home.” Beachcomber immediately inquired, “And here I thought you wanted to keep our crimson guest.”

Caught off guard, Marble began to defend herself, “I mean, I’d kinda like it if they could stay, but we found them alone on the streets. They probably need help.” She then turned to face her mentor as she replied, “And besides, you said I wasn’t responsible enough for a pet yet.” The gray girl caught herself as she quickly apologized, “Sorry sir. I hope that didn’t come off as too mean.”

Thankfully, Beachcomber reassured his protégé, “It’s alright Marble. So far, you’ve done a pretty good job taking care of our little friend there.” As the younger geologist felt her heart soar at her mentor’s compliments, he continued, “Who knows? Maybe once this is all sorted out, we can talk to the museum board about letting you keep a pet on the property.”

Lighting up, Marble squealed, “Thank you sir.” Nodding, Beachcomber replied, “You’re welcome kid. Now then, eat up. It’ll be about a 45-minute drive to Airazor’s little sanctuary.” With that, Marble and the scarlet macaw began to eat their breakfast, all while Beachcomber thought to himself, ‘Well now, aren’t they just the perfect pair?’

Seated in her mentor’s SUV, Marble held the crimson parrot in her lap as she stared out into the green horizon outside her window. As the sea of evergreen trees passed by, she took a deep breath as she remarked, “Sure is a nice day today, isn’t it?” The macaw gave its answer in the form of an excited and enthusiastic caw, suggesting it agreed with her statement. Just holding her feathered friend in her lap made Marble feel somewhat more relaxed, a feeling she remembered her friends seemed to show during their pet playdate a few days before.

After a few more minutes, Beachcomber called out, “All right now, looks like we’re here.” Looking out the window, Marble found herself staring at a wooden building placed right in front of what seemed to be a massive spherical structure, something that reminded her of the third installment of one of her favorite movie franchises. Tilting her head, the young geologist asked, “What do you think she has in there? Pterosaurs?”

Parking the car near the building’s front entrance, Beachcomber turned to his protégé and remarked, “So, you ready kiddo?” Nodding, Marble replied, “I’m ready.” She then unfastened her seatbelt as she turned her attention to the scarlet macaw and said, “Come on.” She then extended her arm for the parrot, who immediately climbed up her arm and perched on her shoulder. Beachcomber couldn’t help but remark, “I swear you two have known each other a day and you’re already inseparable.”

As everyone exited the SUV, Marble was caught off guard by the sound of a bird loudly screeching. ‘That’s odd.’ The gray girl thought to herself. ‘That was too far away for the parrot to make.’ Looking up, she noticed something in the shape of a large bird circling overhead. Marble found herself asking, “What is that? Some sort of eagle?”

Both Marble and Beachcomber received their answer in the form of a woman’s voice answer, “A Condor, in actuality.” Turning to see who it was, they found a woman emerging from the building’s front door. She had gray skin, blue eyes, brown hair tied up into a bun, and wore a golden colored outfit. As she approached the two geologists and their crimson parrot, the woman performed a respectful bow as she introduced herself, “Greetings. I am Airazor.”

Approaching her, Beachcomber introduced himself, “Hello there. I’m Beachcomber, and this is my protégé, Marble Pie. I called yesterday regarding…” He paused for a moment as he turned to the young geologist and pointed to the macaw perched on her shoulder as he finished, “… Our new friend here.”

Airazor made her way to Marble as she remarked, “I must say, for a parrot to be willing to perch itself upon the shoulders of someone they just met is very rare.” As the macaw let out an affectionate squawk, Marble said, “Uh… Thanks? My girlfriend and I found them lying all alone behind a dumpster. We couldn’t just leave them there.” The older woman nodded as she replied, “And for that I am impressed.” She then extended her own arm and said to the parrot, “Lai.”

As the macaw climbed onto her arm, Airazor said, “I see they seem to be in good health, all things considered.” She then began to make her way towards the building as she continued, “I will give them a good check up and see if they have any hidden ailments. You two are free to look around the front office and the aviary observatory.”

Lighting up, Marble turned to her mentor as she asked, “Can I look around Mr. Beachcomber? Please?” Pausing for a moment, Beachcomber scratched his chin before he answered, “Alright, you can. Just be careful.” Smiling, Marble pulls the blue man into a tight hug as she replied, “Thank you.” With that, Airazor took the parrot away to perform her inspection as Marble began to explore the facility.

Walking through the observatory, Marble was amazed by just how inviting the whole place was. Rather than glass windows, the aviary, or at least the wing she was currently making her way through, and the observatory were simply separated by wooden rails, allowing the many birds that called the aviary home to fly up to visitors for a closer look. Of course, there were a few rules that visitors were instructed to follow. For example, since some of the animals were technically wild animals, no food was allowed inside under any circumstances.

“At least I didn’t have any on me.” Marble whispered to herself. As she continued her walk, the gray geologist couldn’t help but think to herself, ‘I hope that parrot is ok.’ Airazor and Beachcomber reassured her that the scarlet macaw would be alright, but she knew they couldn’t know that until the former finished her examination. ‘I mean, of course the little bird seemed to be alright. They weren’t a complete skeleton, and I don’t think their wings were clipped. Of course, I’ve never seen what a clipped wing looks like…...’

Shaking her head, Marble tried to reassure herself, “Don’t stress yourself out too much. Besides, once they finish with their checkup, Airazor will probably take the parrot in.” The moment she said this, Marble solemnly sighed as she said, “Guess I’ll miss the little buddy.” After all, wasn’t like she could be trusted to take care of a pet, especially for longer than a day or two, right?

Marble’s rambling rant was interrupted by the sound of a bird screeching. Turning to see what it was, the young geologist found herself staring at a large bird with piercing yellow eyes, black skin, and bright red feathers perched on the railing. As the bird locked eyes on her, Marble let out a nervous gulp as she awkwardly greeted, “Uh… Hello there.” She extended her hand to the new bird as she continued, “I’m Marble. You look like a vulture. Who are you?”

It was at this moment that another sound caught Marble completely off guard. It was a deep, scratchy, and metallic voice calling for the large bird to come to it. It was a voice that sent a chill down Marble’s spine. And most importantly, it was a voice that could command complete obedience with two very simple words.

“Laserbeak. Return.”

As Marble felt her heart skip a beat, the crimson feathered vulture let out an affectionate caw before leaping into the air, zooming past the gray girl. Leaping out of the way, she exclaimed, “What was that for?” Turning around to follow where the large bird had gone, Marble found herself shocked by the sight before her.

There, standing with the vulture perched on his arm, stood a man with dark purple skin, piercing yellow eyes, a dark blue suit and tie, and perhaps most striking of all, a purple mask that covered his mouth, chin, nose, and cheeks. This new mystery man gently scratched the bird’s chin as it nuzzled its beak against his face. Marble couldn’t help but think to herself, ‘They seem to have a strong connection to each other.’

The mystery man turned his attention to Marble and, in his unnerving robotic voice, called out, “Girl. Approach.” Gulping in fear, the young geologist nervously approached him as she asked, “Uh, is everything alright sir?” To her surprise, the man extended his other hand as he greeted, “Hello. Laserbeak speaks highly of you.” As she shook his hand, the gray girl replied, “Uh… Thank you? I’m Marble.”

The mystery man gave a polite nod as he replied, “Designation; Soundwave.”

Tilting her head, Marble replied, "Nice to meet you Mr. Soundwave sir. Forgive me for asking, but what’s up with your voice?” For several moments, both Marble and Soundwave stood there in awkward silence. Eventually, the gray girl apologized, “Sorry if that was too intrusive.”

Thankfully for Marble, Soundwave reassured her, “Apologies not needed.” He then pointed to his throat as he explained, “Vocal chords damaged years ago. Synthetic voice box.” His bird, Laserbeak if Marble remembered correctly, let out an affectionate (and admittedly adorable caw) as the purple man responded, “Noted. We shall get you a new toy on the way home.” Turning his attention back to Marble, Soundwave bade, “Farewell Marble. May we meet again.” Nodding, the gray girl replied, “Yeah. Take care sir.”

As the older man began to depart, both he and the gray girl were greeted by Airazor, who gently said, “Good to see that Laserbeak is feeling like herself again. Maybe now you’ll heed my warnings about ingesting dangerous substances.” Nodding, Soundwave replied, “Duly noted. Good day madam.” As Soundwave left, the older woman let out a gentle chuckle as she turned to Marble and remarked, “I see you met Soundwave. He may not be particularly chatty, but he’s a good enough chap.”

Walking up to the older woman, Marble asked, “So, if you’re here, I take it you finished? Everything alright with the parrot?” Smiling, Airazor reassured the young girl, “Everything is alright. She is mostly fine.” Hearing this, the young geologist asked, “She? You mean they’re a girl bird?” Nodding, Airazor continued, “Yes. Now, if you would follow me….” She then began to usher Marble away to the aviary infirmary.

As the two women entered the infirmary, Marble found Beachcomber seated in a simple black chair in the room’s corner. However, what really caught the gray girl’s attention was the crimson parrot standing on the table in the middle of the room, looking around with what could only be described “worry.” The moment the macaw locked eyes with her, she let out an excited and friendly, “Marble! Marble!” as she flapped down to the floor and began to try and climb up the gray girl’s leg.

Though she was momentarily caught off guard (and briefly recoiled at the mild pain of the parrot’s claws piercing into her leg), Marble eventually knelt and extended her arm to her feathery friend, allowing her to climb up on her shoulder. Once the bird was comfortably perched, the young geologist asked her, “You doing alright there? I hear you are quite the lovely little lady.”

As the parrot gave Marble an affectionate bite to her nose, Airazor began, “Now then. Beachcomber here explained to me that our little friend here can glide down to the ground but can’t quite fly.” Nodding, the young geologist replied, “Yeah. Are her wings clipped?” The older woman shook her head as she explained, “They aren’t clipped, but it’s something else entirely.”

Taking a deep breath, Airazor explained, “I’ve seen this condition before. Birds that are confined to small environments often don’t develop enough strength in their wings and chest, preventing them from being able to fly.” As the parrot rested her head against Marble’s own head, Beachcomber stood up as he asked, “What do you mean “confined to small environments?” Do you mean like…”

Airazor interrupted with, “You remember how I said that we were busy performing surgery of some bald eagles? It’s because they were rescued from illegal bird smugglers.” Marble felt her jaw dropping as she asked, “What? Illegal bird smugglers?” The older woman nodded as she replied, “Yes. You’d be surprised by just how much some people would pay for exotic pets.” As Marble took this information in, she noticed that the older woman’s fist was starting to clench in rage.

Concerned, Marble asked, “Everything alright ma’am?” Airazor took a deep breath to collect herself before reassuring the young girl, “Everything is fine my dear. At least as far as they can be.” She then turned her attention to the scarlet macaw as she explained, “Animal trafficking just really enrages me. People kidnap rare or exotic animals from the wild and keep them in cages for Primus knows how long and…. It just grinds my gears.”

At that moment, Marble had a realization. ‘Hold on. The parrot is clearly terrified of cages, and if….’ As the gears in her head turned, the gray girl found herself blurting out, “Wait! That explains why our friend here is terrified of cages and would only sleep somewhere she could easily escape from!” She then turned her eyes to the parrot perched on her shoulder, who simply let out an affectionate caw.

Beachcomber then inquired, “I see. Well now, If I may ask, how’d this macaw end up on the street?” Shrugging, Airazor replied, “I have no Idea. I know birds can be quite intelligent, but I’ve never seen anything like what you two have described before.” She then made her way to Marble and the macaw as she complimented, “But I must say, I’m genuinely surprised by just how fond our friend is of you young lady.”

Smiling as she scratched the back of her neck, Marble replied, “I guess she has. I’m just sad that we’ll have to give her to you.” However, to both her and Beachcomber’s surprise, Airazor said something that caught both of them off guard.

“Actually, I think she might be better if left under your care.”

As everyone took this in, Airazor explained, “We’re starting to get a little crowded around here, and from what I’ve seen, you two seem to have a really strong connection. And unlike some of the other birds we have here, macaws are safe to be kept as pets.” She then walked up to Marble as she added, “And who knows, I might be able to help you two get all the paperwork done to formally adopt her if you do a good enough job.”

Hearing this, Marble lit up as she practically squealed, “Come on Mr. Beachcomber! Please?!” As his protégé begged him, the older man warned, “I’m not too sure. Remember what I said about the museum board?” Airazor then spoke up as she reassured him, “I think I might be able to help you two with the board. After all, you would be doing a favor for the Cybertron State Bird Rescue and Aviary.”

At this moment, she turned back to Marble and gently warned, “Of course, I will be stopping by once a month to check up on our feathery friend to make sure you are taking care of her. If it looks like you’re doing a poor job, I will remand her back into my care.” Gulping in fear, the gray girl nervously reassured Airazor, “D-d-don’t worry. I’ll do the best I possibly can.”

Now it was Beachcomber’s turn to be just little stern as he told his protégé, “Now Marble, if we do this, I want you to know that this will primarily be your responsibility. I’ll help you, but I want you to understand that this will be up to you.” Resting his hand on the young girl’s free shoulder, the blue geologist asked, “You think you can handle that?”

Hearing this, Marble began to turn deathly pale as she thought to herself, ‘Can I do this? I mean, actually take care of a pet?’ After all, Beachcomber had made it clear to her how much he felt she wasn’t ready for the responsibility. However, when she turned to face the parrot that was sitting on her shoulder, the young geologist knew she couldn’t just allow her crimson friend to be pawned off to someone who may not have had the time to give her the time she needed.

Taking a deep breath, Marble brushed her long bangs out of her face as she said, “Ms. Airazor, I can’t promise I’ll be one hundred percent perfect, but I promise I’ll do the best I can.” As Airazor took this in, the young geologist gulped as she turned her head away, worried she had failed to prove her point.

Instead, the older woman gently reassured her with a warm, “In that case, I think there’s only a few things left to do for now.” Raising her finger, Airazor began, “Firstly, you’ll need to find appropriate sleeping arrangements for our friend here, as well as enrichment materials, cleaning supplies, and somewhere for her to sleep that isn’t a cage.” She then turned to Beachcomber as she added, “I believe you will be able to help with that.”

Turning back to Marble, the older woman concluded with, “As for you, there is one thing you can do for her right now. I believe she needs a name.” Pausing for a moment, the young geologist tried to think of a name for the parrot that she could now more or less call her pet. Thankfully, noticing her brilliant scarlet plumage, Marble could only think of one choice that would fit the red parrot.

“Scarlett. Her name is Scarlett.”

Hearing this, Scarlett let out a series of happy chirps and caws as she said, “Scarlett! I’m Scarlett!” Flapping her wings, the scarlet macaw nuzzled Marble’s cheek, leading to the gray girl to warmly reassure her, “Guess you and me are partners in crime now, aren’t we?” The parrot made kissing noises as she playfully replied, “Stick ‘em up partner” Marble couldn’t help but laugh at Scarlett’s attempt to sound tough.

Approaching his protégé, Beachcomber said, “Alright now. I think we ought to stop by the pet shop and get everything we need. After that, how about we head home?” Nodding, Marble replied, “I think that sounds like a plan.” She then turned her head to face her new pet as she asked, “What do you say Scarlett?”

Flapping her wings, Scarlett happily replied, “Here we go!” Satisfied, Beachcomber turned to face Airazor as he bade, “I think we’re good to go ma’am. Thanks for taking a look at Scarlett. We’ll be in touch.” The older woman gave a respectful bow as she replied, “Thank you. I’ll send you the bill in a few days.”

With that, Beachcomber made his way out of the infirmary and towards the facility’s entrance as he said, “Come on Marble. Let’s get moving.” Nodding, the gray girl replied, “Yes sir.” She then turned to Scarlett as she said, “Let’s go home.” And so, the gray girl and her new parrot departed, all while Airazor let out a happy sigh as she muttered to herself, “Well Scarlett, I think you’re going to find that you’re in very capable hands.”

After all, the young geologist seemed willing to give Scarlett a fresh start, and what better place to start one's life over than a town like Allspark Wells?