The Bats, Birds, and The Beasts
Aesop | Greece
A war between birds and beasts led to bats' clever neutrality, but their changing allegiances resulted in banishment to darkness.
Once upon a time, a great war broke out between the birds and the beasts. They could not agree and so they fought, each using their own strength. The foxes were always after the geese and the eagles never left the hares alone. Even the owls, who seemed wise, would eat mice every day.
This war was a dreadful thing to behold. Many hares and mice were lost. Chickens and geese were taken down in large numbers. After every fight, the winner would feast.
In this time of trouble, the bat family was careful. They did not choose a side to support. They were clever and waited to see who would win. When the birds were winning, the bats said, "We are birds too!" But when the beasts started to win, they quickly changed and said, "Actually, we are beasts!"
After the battle was over, the birds and the beasts talked about what the bats had done. They felt that the bats had been dishonest by changing sides. Both the birds and the beasts decided to chase the bats away.
So, the bats had to hide. They found dark towers and empty old buildings to live in. They only came out at night when everyone else was asleep. They had been clever, but their cleverness made everyone else angry. Now, they had to live in the dark.
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