Utmost Magpie

In Britain and Ireland, many people believe - though some pretend they don’t - that the sighting of one magpie presages bad luck, and two mean good luck. Here is the full range of magpie prophecies.

One for sorrow, two for joy,

Three for a girl, four for a boy,

(Or: Three for a wedding, four for to die)

Five for silver, six for gold,

Seven for a secret never to be told,

Eight for a wish, nine for a kiss,

Ten for a bird you must not miss.

The unnamed Captain of a flock of magpies has ended the tradition of Mortal Combat for leadership out of a respect for life, especially his own.

When the innovative Kawa mounts a successful - but bloodless - Challenge, Flock take a major step up the evolution ladder.

On Kawa’s heroic death, the compassionate Ghareel, the first female captain, elevates Flock from mere folklore into legend.

The Fall from such a height is precipitous. Can the elderly, crippled, deaf, nearly blind ex-Captain - now with a newly minted name - restore Flock to their former glory?