prepare, per General Mam’s instructions.”
“Then, does that mean…”
Before the owl could finish asking his question, Tarn answered it. “Kill them, and take their burrows, just like we did to that old fool who lived here. Exterminate them!” he bellowed.
The owls in the burrow hooted eagerly. Outside, Tavis and Cletus felt a hollow pull in their gizzards. Hiram!
“In two nights’ time we will have finished connecting the southern and eastern networks of burrows.” Then Tarn added, “With our tunnels linked we will be able to burst into all the remaining burrows at once. We’ll slaughter these yokels and the desert will be ours. I want all squads in position the moment the tunnels are complete! We’ll strike at dawn two days hence!”
Cletus had to keep Tavis from storming into the burrow then and there.
“Try to kill me ? That bad-butt, skinny-legged, lousy owl wants to kill me ? Well, I’d like to see him try! Why, I could just tear that owl wing from wing!” Tavis’s anger was brimming. He couldn’t believe what he had heard and seen. He and Cletus snuck their way to another burrow opening near Hiram’s old home and looked in. They saw what must have been hundreds of owls—mostly Barn Owls, some Sooty Owls, Masked Owls, and a few Burrowing Owls—gathered in a freshly excavated chamber. Tunnel mouths pocked the edges leading to what had to be a vast network of burrows. The Pure Ones—that loathsome lot was here , near his home, AGAIN!
Cletus tried to calm his brother down. He practically had to wrestle Tavis away from the burrow. He was just as furious as his brother, but he knew that rage would do them no good now. The brothers flew toward their burrow. Something had to be done.
“Think, Tavis, think! We can’t just go attacking without a plan,” he said. “We have more than ourselves to think about. They were talking about killing every owl who lives here! Think of the hatchlings, not to mention the eggs. Think of Saul and Trixie.”
Cletus knew that, as big and powerful as they were, he and Tavis were only two owls against hundreds. Besides, where would that leave the rest of the desert dwellers? Most of them were Burrowing Owls who lived peaceful lives. Like Hiram, Glaux bless his scroom, many of them were old and weak. Others were mere hatchlings who had yet to take their first flight. They could never defend themselves against the forces of the Pure Ones. Cletus knew that he and Tavis would have to use their brains instead of talons in this situation. He was sure that, deep down, Tavis knew it, too.
When they reached their hollow, Tavis had come to his senses. Though the thought of giving Tarn a thrashing was still very much on his mind, he agreed with Cletus that they had to help their fellow desert dwellers. The brothers agreed: They had to get everyone out safely before the Pure Ones began their assault.
When Tavis was in the right frame of mind, he was a brilliant owl. The plan was his. They had two nights to carry it off. First, he and Cletus would begin a warning relay. The two of them would fly to the southern edge of the Broken Egg. They would tell the owls who lived in the outlying burrows that they must leave their homes immediately. Then those owls would fly or run north to warn two more owls each. Each little group of owls would hop from burrow to burrow, working their way north toward Tavis and Cletus’s burrow. That way, not too many owls would be in the sky or on the ground at one time, and they would not arouse suspicion from any Pure Ones who might be keeping watch. They figured it wouldn’t take them more than one night to get the word out to everyone. While the other owls were relaying the information, Tavis and Cletus would begin excavating. With their powerful talons, they reckoned they could dig through the earth pretty fast. They would dig a tunnel from their burrow to just beyond the earthen ridge of the Broken Egg’s crater, near the border of Ambala.
“Then, does that mean…”
Before the owl could finish asking his question, Tarn answered it. “Kill them, and take their burrows, just like we did to that old fool who lived here. Exterminate them!” he bellowed.
The owls in the burrow hooted eagerly. Outside, Tavis and Cletus felt a hollow pull in their gizzards. Hiram!
“In two nights’ time we will have finished connecting the southern and eastern networks of burrows.” Then Tarn added, “With our tunnels linked we will be able to burst into all the remaining burrows at once. We’ll slaughter these yokels and the desert will be ours. I want all squads in position the moment the tunnels are complete! We’ll strike at dawn two days hence!”
Cletus had to keep Tavis from storming into the burrow then and there.
“Try to kill me ? That bad-butt, skinny-legged, lousy owl wants to kill me ? Well, I’d like to see him try! Why, I could just tear that owl wing from wing!” Tavis’s anger was brimming. He couldn’t believe what he had heard and seen. He and Cletus snuck their way to another burrow opening near Hiram’s old home and looked in. They saw what must have been hundreds of owls—mostly Barn Owls, some Sooty Owls, Masked Owls, and a few Burrowing Owls—gathered in a freshly excavated chamber. Tunnel mouths pocked the edges leading to what had to be a vast network of burrows. The Pure Ones—that loathsome lot was here , near his home, AGAIN!
Cletus tried to calm his brother down. He practically had to wrestle Tavis away from the burrow. He was just as furious as his brother, but he knew that rage would do them no good now. The brothers flew toward their burrow. Something had to be done.
“Think, Tavis, think! We can’t just go attacking without a plan,” he said. “We have more than ourselves to think about. They were talking about killing every owl who lives here! Think of the hatchlings, not to mention the eggs. Think of Saul and Trixie.”
Cletus knew that, as big and powerful as they were, he and Tavis were only two owls against hundreds. Besides, where would that leave the rest of the desert dwellers? Most of them were Burrowing Owls who lived peaceful lives. Like Hiram, Glaux bless his scroom, many of them were old and weak. Others were mere hatchlings who had yet to take their first flight. They could never defend themselves against the forces of the Pure Ones. Cletus knew that he and Tavis would have to use their brains instead of talons in this situation. He was sure that, deep down, Tavis knew it, too.
When they reached their hollow, Tavis had come to his senses. Though the thought of giving Tarn a thrashing was still very much on his mind, he agreed with Cletus that they had to help their fellow desert dwellers. The brothers agreed: They had to get everyone out safely before the Pure Ones began their assault.
When Tavis was in the right frame of mind, he was a brilliant owl. The plan was his. They had two nights to carry it off. First, he and Cletus would begin a warning relay. The two of them would fly to the southern edge of the Broken Egg. They would tell the owls who lived in the outlying burrows that they must leave their homes immediately. Then those owls would fly or run north to warn two more owls each. Each little group of owls would hop from burrow to burrow, working their way north toward Tavis and Cletus’s burrow. That way, not too many owls would be in the sky or on the ground at one time, and they would not arouse suspicion from any Pure Ones who might be keeping watch. They figured it wouldn’t take them more than one night to get the word out to everyone. While the other owls were relaying the information, Tavis and Cletus would begin excavating. With their powerful talons, they reckoned they could dig through the earth pretty fast. They would dig a tunnel from their burrow to just beyond the earthen ridge of the Broken Egg’s crater, near the border of Ambala.
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