Lost Tales of Ga'Hoole

nodded to each other, and then to Cletus.
    “Quickly. I’ll help you with your eggs. The Pure Ones are out there. We will hold them off. You must flee as best you can. Run or fly! Head for our burrow, there’s a tunnel that will lead you to the northern edge of the desert. Once you’re in the tunnel, run and don’t look back,” Cletus instructed.
    Just then, Tavis arrived at the burrow with splatters of blood in his feathers.
    “I took care of them. I didn’t let any of ’em get back to call for reinforcements,” Tavis said proudly. “These boulders here may have saved your lives!” he added.
    It was true, Cletus realized. The boulders that surrounded Saul and Trixie’s burrow kept the Pure Ones from digging through. They were lucky. But it wasn’t going to keep them safe forever.
    Saul and Trixie each picked up an egg from the nest and headed out of the burrow. Cletus reached a foot into the nest. The white orb seemed so tiny and fragile in the talons of the Great Gray that it made the usually nimble Cletus feel like a clumsy giant.
    But before he could pick it up, the last egg wobbled and cracked, right in front of Cletus’s eyes. He stared in amazement—he had never seen a chick hatch before. And although he always imagined it to be unremarkable, he was enthralled by the simple process. The tiny chick inside the egg stretched and pushed aside the pieces of the shell that housed it. And immediately it seemed impossible that it had fit into the little egg from which it hatched just a moment ago. The chick plopped into the nest, squirming.
    “Trixie! Saul!” Cletus finally managed to find his voice and call out. He backed away from the nest to let the new parents see their chick.
    Trixie and Saul rushed to their newly hatched chick. For just a moment, Cletus saw utter joy and awe in their eyes. Their look of joy was quickly replaced by a look of worry.
    “What do we do now?” asked Saul.
    At the same time, Tavis spotted trouble in the air. “Incoming! Barn Owls from the east. Three of them.”
    “Put the chick on my back,” Cletus instructed. “I’ll keep it safe, I promise. You stick to the plan and fly as fast as you can.”
    Cletus knew that the best chance the tiny new chick had was as his passenger. Trixie and Saul knew it, too. With great care, they picked up the tiny chick and placed it on Cletus’s back, right between the wings. They grabbed the remaining two eggs and lifted off after Tavis.
    Cletus took to the air. He realized immediately that he could not fly in his usual way. He had to balance the chick in the middle of his back—this meant no banking, no rolling, and definitely no fancy midair talon work. This might have been okay if he were merely trying to get from one place to another, but it just wouldn’t do right now.
    The Pure Ones were on them as soon as the two Great Grays and now three Burrowing Owls began their flight. The burrow, which was only a short flight away, seemed like it was on the other side of the world. Between them and their goal were four Sooty Owls and two Barn Owls.
    Tavis flew point and met the six attackers head-on. He was a flash of whirling, darting gray feathers.

My desert, my home,
You better leave us alone!
This is my sky, you hear?
The brothers gray you ought to fear.
Pure this, pure that,
I’ll see you go splat!

    Two of the Sooties fell within a heartbeat. Tavis charged after another.
    One of the Barn Owls was on top of Saul. Saul was not the strongest flier to begin with, and clutching an egg in his talons made it worse. He could barely defend himself. He tried to get away, but the remaining Sooties now surrounded him. Tavis was at his side as soon as he saw that his friend was in trouble.
    “YA!” He dove into the fray with a battle cry. Before anyone could blink, Tavis was talon to talon with the Barn Owl who went after Saul. Tavis slashed at the owl and caught him at the base of the wing. The owl spun out of control and fell to the ground below.
    In the meantime, the two Sooties swiped at Saul and Trixie. It was a despicable move—attacking the smallest owls, who were carrying eggs—but that was what the Pure Ones did. One of the Sooties grazed Saul on the tail. It wasn’t enough to hurt him but it made him lose his balance as well as his hold on the egg. The egg fell toward the ground. Cletus’s yellow eyes zoomed in on the tiny white egg. He dove for it as soon as he saw it leave Saul’s clutch. Just before it hit the ground,