PROLOGUE
The scarlet light from the sunset filtered into the fir tree hollow, making the blood seem gristlier than it truly was. Marella stood there, holding her young daughter close to her body, pressing Eglantine's eyes away from the horrible sight before her. Eglantine hid underneath her wing, turning her own face away. She couldn't bear to look.
Marella stared at the mutilated body of her mate, Noctus. At least it used to be him. All she could see was blood. Blood and gore and twisted feathers and a few shatterings of white bone. She shuddered and closed her eyes, seeing him again.
They had made her watch. They had held her right there, forced her to listen to his screams and cries of pain, as he refused to join their ranks. And they had killed him for it. They had tortured him to the point that he was almost dead, with just a shaving of life left. His breathing heavy, he had turned his once bright, but now strangely dull and glazed eyes upon her and whispered. "I love you. Remember that. Don't give in to them…ever." Then he sighed, and a sensation that Marella would have described as relief — if she had not been so grieved at the same moment — spread through her. It was over. For him.
"Eyes over here," a gruff voice barked.
Marella took a deep breath and forced her gaze away from her darling mate. She couldn't make herself look her son — could she even call him that? After what he was doing to them? — in the eyes. She hoped to see some glint of mercy in them. All she saw was hardened flint. She swallowed. She wasn't as strong as Notcus. She felt fear welling up inside of her. I'll yield to the torcher. Even….even after what he said. I just know I will. She prayed that she would not be given the option.
"I know you're no different than da," a sneer came from Kludd's beak at the word, and Marella flinched. "You and he — and Eglantine and Soren, too — all of you are a bunch of goggle-gizzard legend lovers. You think you're better than us because of it." He cackled harshly. "The truth is, even if da would have surrendered to me, I would have killed him anyway."
Marella's gizzard stilled. This is not looking good, was her first thought. But her second contained a flare of hope. That means he's going to kill me anyway. While it's not ideal, at least I know that giving in to them is pointless. Her hopes shattered with his next words.
"Of course, less painfully. I probably would have just drawn my talons over his throat in a flash!" He quickly swiped his clawed talon through the air, causing Marella to jump in fright. Noctus' blood still coated them. "And that would have eased his pain considerably. Now," he pondered, drawing out his words. "You're my mother, whether I like it or not, and Eglantine's my sister. I've been trying to decide what to do with both of you. You have two choices. One: You can surrender to me and renounce everything that you love and care about and possibly have the chance of living (or not, it depends on my mood); or Two: You can refuse my gracious offer and die almost instantly."
Marella thought for a bit. Oh, what should I do? She glanced down at her trembling daughter. She hated making this decision. She simply couldn't. She wasn't strong enough. She never had been. Noctus had always been her anchor. Her rock. And now he was gone. She felt like she was floundering in some endless sea, her child clinging to her for support — and what a weak support she was! She took a breath and gazed around the hollow. Her eyes smiled as they lighted on certain objects: the book of Psalms sitting in the corner, Eglantine's owlipoppen that had been carelessly shoved to the side as the Pure Ones barged in, Soren's drawing of the Great Tree, with scruffy figures of owls perched on every branch. Finally, she stared at her mate.
Then it came to her in a flash. His last words: "Don't give in to them…Ever." There was her answer. Right there. She didn't need to decide. He had known it would be impossible for her. So he chose. His last selfish act of love. To spare her the weight of choosing to die, while he himself was dying. She felt a few tears gathering around the corners of her eyes.
"Tick, tick," Kludd growled menacingly. His talons tapped, one after the other, on the hollow's floor impatiently.
Marella raised her head a bit higher and looked him squarely in the eyes. She felt a glow of satisfaction at his cringe. She had raised herself to his level, if not one higher, even if it was only for a moment. "We will never give in. To deny the Legends, the Guardians…it would simply rip us apart. We would not be the same owls. Kill us. Fine. But my daughter and I refuse to become pawns in your evil talons. I cannot stop the Pure Ones. But I can refuse to serve you."
Furious hatred boiled Kludd's blood, and Marella could practically see him steaming with rage. He moved toward her and she held her ground. Even when he was right on top of her, she still stared at him. She felt a movement at her side, and looked down to see Eglantine matching her brother's glare. He turned his gaze on her, and Marella felt a sickening sense of dread. Her daughter was about to be killed in front of her eyes. Just before she saw his talon slice the air, she whispered, "I love you, Eg. You're making everyone very proud."
She tried futilely to blink away the tears that streamed down her face. At least Kludd had been merciful. He had simply broken his sister's neck. And while the darling, black eyes dimmed, Marella knew her daughter felt no pain.
Kludd kicked his sister's body away, off into a corner of the hollow. Marella swallowed a knot in her throat. "Move," he whispered fiendishly. He pushed her toward the hollow's exit. She felt the gentle lichen that spilled over it brush up against her back.
"To make some certain owls happy, — one of whom is myself — I have to kill all of you," Kludd glared at her. "And that means all. Soren, too. Actually, he's the one that I want to destroy the most. His demise will be worse than da's, longer, but he will die in the end. Eglantine, well," a note that could only be described as wistful crept into his voice. "As much as I hate to admit it, she's always held a soft place in my heart. Why do you think I let her get out of St. Aggie's?
"And you?" He eyed her, mock curiosity displayed in his face. "Well, you never did anything terrible. I can't think of anything that I hold against you. So it'll be nice and easy for you too. I already made you suffer by watching da and your daughter die." A horrid glow spread into his eyes. Marella wondered what this look was for. It was absolutely evil. After a few minutes, Kludd continued. "The trauma in his face is almost palpable! I can see him receiving the news that I killed his whole family."
What, so now he's psychotic and speaking to himself? Marella felt nauseous and thought she would yarp her partially digested pellet up right then and there. Her head still swam with grief over the loss of her family, and Kludd was already here coming up with more horrifying plans!
"Hmmm," he turned to one of the Pure One officers near him. He whispered in his ear slit, something so quiet that Marella couldn't even hear. As the owl flew off, Kludd turned back to her. "Again, I'm being nice."
Marella felt white, hot pain explode throughout her body. She felt herself falling, and couldn't help but see Noctus again, lying in a pool of blood, and her daughter, so still that she might be asleep. Except that she wasn't. After what seemed like an eternity that was only a span of a few seconds, she let herself go as she sank into a blissful, griefless blackness.
I didn't give in.
The moment Ezylryb saw the slipgizzle near his hollow, he knew something was up. He thought frantically, wondering what it was. He was a Tyto, which obviously meant he was from Tyto Forest. And in Tyto Forest there was…Oh, Glaux no.
"What's wrong?" He asked quietly.
The owl looked up in a bit of surprise. He shook it off and jumped right in. "One of your students lost his entire family to the Pure Ones. Slaughter."
Ezylryb sighed, gazing upward. "Soren?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer. The slipgizzle nodded. "Sprinking Pure Ones," Ezylryb muttered. He picked up the quill pen and wrote a few sentences.
A look of horror crossed over the Tyto's face at the sound of the forbidden word. "Sir—" he stammered, then bit his tongue. This was not a good time to "scold" about swearing. "Aren't you going to tell him?" He finished instead.
Ezylryb gave the owl a withering look. "Yes, of course I am going to wake up a young student of mine in the middle of the day with the worst news possible — that his entire family is dead and his brother is the one who killed them. Brutally, no doubt. Not to mention that I care very deeply about this student! Of course, I'm genius enough to tell him now!" Through his rant, Ezylryb's voice and anger had risen to a height he had not used or felt in years. He knew that he had puffed out his feathers to a battle stance.
The slipgizzle took a step back, a bit startled. You better step back, Ezylryb thought smugly. "Of-of course not, sir." The now terrified owl looked for an escape. "I'll be going now. There's nothing new to report other than that."
Ezylryb sighed and felt his feathers collapsing. He stared at the daytime sky for what seemed like forever before heading to his nest. He shook his head. He was not going to enjoy having this conversation with Soren in a few hours.
Ezylryb perched at his desk in the library, watching his students finish their essays. They would be due in ten minutes. Can't they work ahead of time? He thought irritably. Most of them were still hunched over their papers, frantically scanning them — and the textbooks — for a requirement that they had missed. The only ones who were done were Soren and Otulissa, and they had finished nights ago. Otulissa was staring at a book, (Probably Strix Emerilla, Ezylryb thought) and Soren was…Ezylryb raised his brow. Soren was helping Ruby finish her essay. Bless her heart, Ezylryb churred. At least he's willing to help her. That reminded him. Racdrops, Ezylryb thought, closing his eyes. I still have to tell him.
Why on earth do they make the rybs tell the students? He wondered.
Because, a voice inside him answered. Boron and Barran assume that the rybs are closest to the students.
Well, he argued with himself. How does that help?
I don't know. You're talking to yourself!
This is ridiculous, he mused inwardly.
Octavia happened to slither by at that moment. She looked at him closely. Well, not exactly looked, per say. More like perceived. She knew something was wrong.
"Lyze," she whispered. Ezylryb started out of his mind rambling. Octavia rarely called him that. Glaux, he hadn't heard it in ages.
"Yes," he replied, equally quiet.
"What's wrong?"
He sighed. "I have to deliver the worst news that anyone can ever receive to my favorite student." He muttered.
Octavia's blue-green scales seemed to dull. "All of them?" She asked, horrified. Ezylryb nodded. Octavia swung her head in the young Barn Owl's direction and clucked her tongue motheringly. She turned back to face Ezylryb. "Class is almost over, Lyze. It's just night flight after that. Tell him then. In your hollow," she added softly before slipping away.
Ezylryb nodded. At that moment, he cleared his throat loudly, sharpened his resolve, and prayed that the tremor of grief had left his voice. "Alright, everyone. Essays, please." He spoke gruffly, acting as though it were any other day. Except that it wasn't. "Night flight started five minutes ago. I gave you a bit of extra time for revisions. Your work should reflect it."
One by one the students filed toward him, some sighing out of relief and others from fear. He counted each parchment as he received it, noting the length by whether or not multiple pages were strung together with dried rodent's hide.
As they glided hastily out of the room through the port exit, Ezylryb called quickly, "Soren!"
The Barn Owl turned back from his conversation with Otulissa and walked over to him. "Yes, sir?" he asked, blinking, utterly unaware of the news that was about to change his life.
Ezylryb swallowed nervously. When was the last time I felt nervous? He thought randomly. "I need to speak with you…" he glanced around the library, remembering Octavia's suggestion. "In my hollow."
Soren's eyes flickered anxiously. Ezylryb tensed, wondering if the lad could read his mind. "Did I do something wrong?" He let out his breath. Soren didn't know. Yet.
"No, not at all. Just follow me." Ezylryb set off toward his hollow high in the Tree, and Soren flew after him.
What is going on? Soren wondered. If I'm not getting reprimanded with a Flint Mop, then what on earth does he need me in his hollow for? He shook his head. He would find out soon.
A minute later, he and Ezylryb arrived in the hollow that the Weather ryb used for educational and personal purposes. For once, the room was surprisingly tidy — normally there were random sheets of parchment and weather gadgets tossed everywhere — and Soren guessed Octavia had worked on cleaning up a bit with the lull in scholastic instruction.
At the same time as he thought about the gentle Kielian Snake, she slithered into the room with two cups of milkberry tea on her back. Soren looked up at his teacher's slightly startled expression. Apparently he wasn't expecting her either.
Ezylryb sighed and gestured to a spot at the table in the middle of the hollow. Octavia, noting his movements, simultaneously placed the tea cup in front of Ezylryb and at Soren's spot. After giving an encouraging nod to the Whiskered Screech — which Soren found rather odd — and what looked like a glance of sympathy in his direction — even stranger — she left.
Soren turned his gaze away from the snake and looked up at Ezylryb. It looked as though he hesitated, and Soren could tell he had something extremely important to say. He wondered if Ezylryb would go around in circles before getting to the point. He tended to do that in class. And in conversations on a personal level, Soren noted silently.
Ezylryb closed his eyes. "Soren," he said softly. The young Barn Owl stared at him expectantly. "Something happened." The blank expression he received made him groan inwardly in frustration. I'd better just get it over with. "Our slipgizzle from Tyto arrived with some news. The Pure Ones came to your family's hollow." Ezylryb looked up from the knotted wood in the table he was staring at. His gizzard twisted at the fear in Soren's eyes. "They killed them," he whispered.
Soren blinked. He couldn't hear anything. A rushing noise filled his ear slits, not just his ear slits, but his entire brain, and nothing penetrated it. Nothing except Ezylryb's words echoing endlessly. "They killed them. They killed them. They killed them." Over and over and over. He couldn't think. He could hardly breathe. Were they tortured?
"Not Eglantine. They were merciful to her."
Soren hadn't thought the words were audible. It wasn't just "they." He knew it was "him." Kludd. Kludd did this. He killed them. Kludd tortured Eglantine — ripped her to shreds; she didn't deserve it. Why? Suddenly, the blizzard raging in his mind halted. He could see normally again. He could think. But all he could think about was Kludd. The hateful, murderous beast.
"Soren, I'm so sorry." Soren looked at Ezylryb's face. An expression of sorrow that he had never seen before was written all over it. "I know how you feel. It'll be alright."
Something inside him snapped. Anger took control of him. "No you don't! I don't know what you're talking about, but it'll never be all right." He barely registered the look of pain on Ezylryb's face, choosing to ignore it. "He took them. He took them from me. He's doing this to me! I just lost my mother, father, and sister, and you're saying that you know how I feel and that it'll be ALRIGHT?!" He shouted, hating that he was doing it, hating himself for hurting his favorite teacher, hating himself for everything. He couldn't figure out why.
He closed his eyes and sobbed, hunching over himself and wanting to die. To just leave. Or maybe he wanted everyone else to leave, he didn't know. What he did know was that his life was in shambles. Just like his heart.
Then he felt wings around him. Wrapped around him tightly, in a soothing embrace that he only remembered feeling from his parents. He knew it was Ezylryb. Soren couldn't understand it. He had unleashed every ounce of the anger inside of him — plus some — on the very owl closest to him. But for some reason it didn't matter. Soren gave in, letting the tide of hate wash away as grief crashed down instead. His heart-wrenching sobs lost their anger and filled with sorrow instead.
Eventually, when they had died down to the occasional shudder and hiccup, Soren looked up and gazed into his mentor's eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
Ezylryb shook his head. "No, lad. You have every right to be angry. To hate. I don't blame you. But I really do know how you feel. Trust me. I'll tell you someday. But not right now. Now is your time to handle your loss. And I'll help you."
Ezylryb stroked his student on the back. No, more than a student, he realized. Because by helping Soren through this, he knew that they would be drawn closer. So close that he knew Soren would look to him as his father. And Ezylryb would see a loving son in the young Barn Owl.