A/N: Yeah, I know, its been a while since I published a GoGH fanfic. I have been really busy with college, plus I have been writing Rio fanfics as well.

Anyways, here is the sequel to The Cost Of Victory. I hope you enjoy it!

Please review, and feel free to flame!

I am taking a break from GoGH stories for awhile, so I apologize.

Anyways, I will still be an active writer, and you can read my Rio stories if you want!

*THE Wolf is out!*

Prologue: In the year following the dreadful day known as The Blood Dawn, the Guardians have nearly recovered from that dark time.

For a long while now, strange objects have been seen in the skies above the Hoolemere Sea.

They seem to pose no threat, and the owls have learned to ignore them.

They do not know those objects belong to a long forgotten species, and that they are searching for a powerful relic.

When the Guardians find that relic and attempt to uncover its purpose, they will have to decide whether or not to make peace with their new neighbors.

Will the Guardians have the courage to allow them to save not only themselves, but the entire planet?

Chapter 1: A Guest On The Shore

The cool veil of autumn has cascaded over the Southern Kingdoms. In the pale glow from the crescent moon above, thousands of shadowy figures drift lazily from the Great Ga'Hoole Tree, borne from the twisted branches on a gentle wind.

All throughout the tree, the soft sighs of roosting owls can be heard, mixing gently with the soft tune of the wind in the branches. Suddenly, the otherworldly calm of the island, is abruptly destroyed.

It is destroyed by a tremendous CRACK and a long, drawn out, grating sound. A new shower of leaves poured from the tree in response, and the ear splitting noise is nearly enough to rattle the Guardians out of their hollows.

The island suddenly bursts into life as hundreds of owls pour from the enormous tree. They gathered at the base, amid the sparse roots, chattering angrily about their disrupted sleep.

Others were still on edge, jumping at the slightest sounds. The king and queen soon arrived, and they appeared just as disturbed by the raucous noise they had heard.

"What was that noise, Your Majesty?"

"Are we under attack again?"

"I was having a pleasant dream until..."

Soren could not even think with the rumble in his ears, though it did seem quieter than before. He realized it was due to his age. He ascended to a projecting root with Pelli right next to him.

He nodded to her, and she split the air with a commanding screech.

"Please, calm down, Guardians! We will figure this out soon enough. Relax yourselves, and we will try to make sense of that strange noise."

It took several moments before the mass of nervous owls managed to still their senses.

Soren drew a deep breath and said, "I assure you, we are not under attack. That noise could not have been created by the tree, either. Even I am confused as to what could have issued such a vile sound. Do any of you have any other explanations?"

A burly Great Horned named Ashton flew up to a lower root and asked, "Do you think it came from one of those flying objects that have been patrolling as of late, Your Majesty?"

Soren looked up and peered deep into the clear, inky black sky. He heard nothing, save for the waves and the wind, that could compare to what he had heard earlier. Many other owls also followed his gaze, but they, too, heard nothing louder than the sounds of nature.

"I don't think it was one of those, Ashton. They normally do not make such pronounced noises, like the one we just heard."

Ashton returned to his spot below, and a Barn Owl called Ross took his place.

Pelli asked warmly, "Your thoughts, Ross?"

"Yes, I, uh, think we should send out scouting parties to see if anything has come to the island. I think they should have a few Barn Owls in them, so they could listen, and maybe a few navigation students as well, Your Majesty."

"I think that is a splendid plan, Ross. Who should we assemble for the teams, dear?"

Soren had to think carefully for several moments.

"I want as many teams as possible to spread out and search the island. Each party should have at least two owls in the Navigation Chaw, and no more than two Barn Owls. You may team up with whoever you choose, as long as you meet the requirements I have set. All of you are to meet back here in no more than half an hour to report what you have found."

"What if we run into trouble, or an emergency, Your Majesty?"

"A wise question, Lydia. I will be searching with my mate over on the west side of the island. Should you encounter anything strange, abandon your search and alert me at once. Glauxspeed, Guardians."

A large number of tight groups of owls lifted off and dispersed in every direction, after a few moments of shuffling and grouping.

Soren turned to his mate and said, "Are you ready, Pelli?"

She shook her head and replied, "I am feeling uneasy, Soren. I think whatever made that Glaux-awful sound is still here..."

"I know Pelli, I am not so calm myself. But we have to discover what it is, nonetheless."

"I know, dear. Let's get going."

Two white forms sprang into flight and peeled off towards the western side of Ga'Hoole.

Wensel, Lydia, and four other owls were flying over the southern stretch of Ga'Hoole, a dreary, rocky place that was hardly ever visited. Shortly after their departure, after the other groups of owls had faded from view, a thick fog had settled over them.

"I can't see anything, Wensel. I can't find my bearings, either. What about you?"

The thick gray mass acted like a sponge, muffling any potential noise to near nothingness.

"The fog is blocking all the sound, Lydia. Even my superior ears can't hear anything in this fog."

She turned and widened her pale yellow eyes as far as possible. She detected little change in the contrast of her surroundings. It was all just the same murky gray tone.

A small Elf Owl drifted in beside Wensel's port wing.

"Maybe we should turn back, Wensel. What is the point of searching if we can't even see or hear anything?"

"You might be right, Rita."

As her words curled into the foggy cloud, he managed to detect a subtle change in their tone.

"Rita, say something again."

"Why? Did you not hear me the first time?"

He noticed some of her words echoed in his ear slits, and some did not.

"Hey, guys, be careful."

Lydia answered, "Why, Wensel? Is there something wrong?"

"I think there is something up ahead."

The small contingent of owls drew in closer, their gizzards clenching in fear. Suddenly, a dark, solid shape drifted from the gloom, right in the path of the search team.

"Watch out for that thing! Dodge!"

The owls swerved abruptly, and a loud clang was heard. Wensel looked back and saw a dark mass fall down into the fog.

"Oh no! Rita!"

He turned and dove in after her, and the other owls followed suit. He heard his wing beats grow louder, and he pulled up just before striking a hard, rough surface.

"Pull up! There is a surface down here!"

Several other owls skidded painfully on the dark ground, not being able to slow down fast enough.

Wensel trotted through the gloom and found Rita lying at the base of a towering structure. Her eyes were closed, but he noticed her chest still rose steadily.

"Rita, wake up. Are you hurt?"

She came to and began rubbing a sore spot on her wing.

"Ouch! I must have run into that, that, thing! What in Glaux's name is it?"

The small band of owls looked up as an errant stream of moonlight glared through the haze. They drooped their beaks in awe as a towering spire glared dimly as the moonlight struck it.

Lydia hesitantly approached it, tapping it with her talon. A familiar clang rang out, causing the owls to shiver slightly.

"It's very cold, and it feels very sturdy, too..."

It seemed to stretch up far above their heads, and it bore several curved shapes along its length. Just then, as the owls turned around, a hearty gust of wind swept across the terrain, carrying away the fog.

They exclaimed, "Where are we?"

Before them, the ground stretched on for several hundred feet. Several more cold shapes arose from the ground, some short, and some tall. But the most alluring formation emerged some distance ahead.

They lofted into a low altitude flight for a closer look. A single long tube erupted from beneath their feet, pointing high into the sky above, towards an unseen target.

A series of large clear cylinders encircled the main tube, and they radiated a faint bluish glow.

Lydia shouted, "Look at how large these things are! I bet you could fit all of us in one of them, and we could still fly around inside it!"

The immense shape dwarfed the owls that explored its base. Wensel noticed a seam that framed the entire structure, and he followed it all the way around. It took him several minutes to return.

"There is a gap between this thing, and the ground we are standing on. I can't get inside though. It's closed tight."

Lydia said, "I think we need to go report this to the monarchs. And besides, Rita is hurt, and we have seen enough already."

The other owls merely nodded and lifted off from the rough ground below.

Lydia stopped briefly to pick up a few fluttering papers strewn across the ground, but she couldn't make out the strange shapes that ran down the pages.

As they sailed towards the Ga'Hoole Tree, the full extent of the object revealed itself: The front edge of the great form had smashed through a sea stack and slid far up the beach.

It tilted oddly to one side, and a pile of rubble lay strewn next to a large gash in the side of the object. The dark rear edge of the figure stretched out into the sea, blending with the horizon. It appeared, to them, to be nearly as long as the Ga'Hoole Tree was tall.

They spotted a quivering mass below and dove rapidly towards it, noticing the monarchs perched back up on the roots. They lofted to a sturdy root and faced the two Barn Owls. Clearing their throats, they began to speak...

"So, Rita, you say that you were flying through the fog, and you ran into a cold structure. That is how you hurt your wing?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"What did you see when Wensel here awoke you?"

"I saw that whatever we were standing on looked like it kept going for a long time, if you know what I mean."

Soren and Pelli gazed at each other curiously.

Pelli turned back to the Elf Owl and said, "Continue, Rita."

"Me and the others noticed a lot of other tall, cold things ahead. They were all over. But the one in the middle was the biggest."

Interesting...Soren thought.

"Can you describe it to us?"

"I will try. There were these clear things that went all the way around it, in a pattern, sort of. They glowed blue, but they were cold, just like the giant metal tube they were attached to..."

She winced as she finished, her wing drooping down by her side.

"Thank you so much, Rita. You have done well. Why don't you run along to the infirmary and get that wing seen about."

She merely nodded, and Lydia assisted her in flight as they glided towards the tree.

"As for the rest of you, I can say you worked hard in your efforts. I hope we can try to understand the object that has landed on our shore. Please try to rest, for the sun is due to rise soon. Feel free to fly out to the structure on the southern shore and observe it. But do not land on it, for any reason. It is still an unknown at this point."

Lydia proceeded to hand Soren the small stack of weathered pages she had found.

"Take these, Your Majesty. I found them blowing around on the surface of that thing, but I do not have a clue as to what the scribbles mean."

"Thank you, Lydia. I have a feeling Otulissa will be able to decipher them."

He dismissed the team of owls before him and yelled, "Good light, Guardians! Sleep peacefully on this bright new day. Let the warm sunshine clear your gizzards and your minds!"

Had the owls of Ga'Hoole not been impressed by Soren's speech and looked up, they may have caught a glimpse of a silver object floating silently far above.

As the large crowd of owls dispersed and threaded into the tree, the rising sun caught the metallic edge of the object, creating a flare of intense light. The object sped towards the southern edge of the sea, zooming off into the southern sky and disappearing from view...