Lost and Found

As far as she can remember, she must be on the same route that her flock traveled. She has flown for quite a bit over the islands and clouds. But she still couldn't find her flock. Asking the flocks of manta rays passing by didn't help either.

Having flown over some more orange-red colored clouds, she stumbled upon a great flight of stairs that led up and up. She flapped her wings little by little to the top of the stairs to find a big arch with birds flying through and a manta ray lying on a rectangle box.

"Maybe this manta ray knows where mom and the others are."

She poked the manta ray's wings with her little wing... No response.
She poked the manta ray's wings some more... no response.

She was about to slap her tail on the manta ray's head when she noticed something. This manta ray has no breath and stayed quiet the whole time when she poked. She found this to be very strange and decided to ask the birds about this. However, every bird that flew by her doesn't want to stop to answer the question of the curious Sorai. Sorai didn't give up until one particular female bird with a blue-colored left-wing answered Sorai's frantic gestures.

"What's wrong, Lil Manta Ray?". Sorai pointed her wing to the motionless manta ray.

"Tweet - You asking about that manta ray? It has been like that for so very long! I don't know much, but legend has it that this manta ray died in honor of a great purpose. Its death is to be celebrated! If you ask me, ain't it a sad little thing? My other birdy friends and I also talked about this before-"

Died? Death? Sorai is unfamiliar with these terms, but she understood that death means being unable to move any longer. The bird tweeted on and on until she noticed the sad Sorai looking straight at the arch.

"Tweet - You lost, Lil Manta Ray?". Sorai nodded.

"Then, why didn't you say so? Let's head north. There are other manta rays along the way to the temple!"

Sorai brightened and joined the very tweety bird along the line of birds' travel route into the arch, over some short to high buildings, and entered a building with a large hole in the middle with two huge gates ahead.