Magefable Adventures: The Summer Storm, Page 3

forest from before I was born and there’s nothing us poor critters can do about it. He’s eaten friends of mine, critters I’ve known since birth. Critters that, like you, Tyrus, did not think he was real. So I’d be quiet if I were you, for those who doubt Da Hoot are the first to go.”

  Tyrus had turned pale in the face as absolute terror overcame every hogspaw of his body. He slowly sat back down amongst his circle of hushed friends and stared nervously at his feet.

  Bezra sat back down too, with a proud smile beaming across her face. Her smile suddenly vanished as she realized the terrible truth of her being right; Da Hoot was real!

  “Uh, oh...” she muttered as she slowly looked back up at Elder Burkus.

  Elder Burkus smiled again as he looked out over the crowd. “Do you want to hear the rest of my story, then? Or has it gotten too scary for you all?”

  They young ones mumbled in hushed tones, all the critters frightened, but there was an unanimous, yet hesitant, consent amongst them.

  “All right then,” Elder Burkus continued. “Shortly after those foxes left the village, we received a long summer storm, the worst we’d had in a generation. It rained for six days and nights. Most of the lower dens flooded, bringing far more critters into Great Hollow than I’ve ever seen. In fact, the water rose so high that it filled halfway up this very room! Durbin and Morro helped me bring all of my books and scrolls up to a higher level where they would be safe from water damage, but every bit of the ground you are sitting on was covered, over your heads, in water!

  “Lots of critters were forced from their homes and came here. Every room in the tree was filled, and most rooms beyond even their capacity. We had squirrels sleeping in the kitchen and dirt hogs nested with the birds amongst the branches. Even Durbin’s room on Birchwatch Hall was filled. He had invited Morro’s family to stay with him—”

  “Hurr, I remember that!” one of Morro’s sisters shouted.

  “Yes, Cara,” Elder Burkus continued. “As you might remember, it was a trying time for the critters of Sapsward. But like we always do, we pulled through as a community. Now during this time, while the critters of Sapsward were all gathered together, Durbin and Morro were enjoying the emptiness of the village and using every opportunity to explore as much as possible. They built a boat out of a giant leaf and floated around from tree to tree, pretending they were on their very own ship like Marcus the Brigand. They even had twigs that they used as oars to push themselves along the trails.

  “The water wasn’t truly that high, an otterstail at the deepest, but it filled in the paths and gaps between the trees and bushes to build a virtual series of rivers that went from Mountscaler Vale in the north to the far southern swamp. And as the rain came down so hard at times, the water took the form of rapids which wove through the forest like a slithering snake.

  “On one particular day towards the end, the clouds rolled in so thick and stormy that it blackened the sky by noon. Durbin had promised me that he’d be back by night, but we could not have predicted how dark it truly would become.

  “Durbin and Morro had sailed southwest towards Everpine and were lost somewhere between the two villages. Now, as I’ve said before, Durbin knows these woods better than most any other critter, but at the time he was much younger and not such a seasoned navigator. And unfortunately for Durbin and Morro, there was hardly a critter around for a larkscry. Well, that’s not true, there was one critter fluttering about during the dark and stormy day; Da Hoot!

  “Durbin and Morro were out in the open, in a wide, pond-sized clearing where several paths converged when they first heard his call.

  “Hoo! Hoo!

  “They both knew the sound all right. Morro’s parents and I had warned them plenty of the so-called Scourge of the Night. They began to paddle in a panic, trying to return to shore, but a boat made of leaves does not travel very fast. They puttered along, trying to reach the ground where the roots stuck up high over the water.

  “They could not hear the sound of Da Hoot’s fluttering as he descended, due to the intensity of the rain, but they did see a sudden flash of grey as he appeared out of the darkness, wings stretched, talons reaching out. He swooped down behind them—

  “Durbin struck away the owl’s talons with his paddle. The force knocked the boat over, sending both Durbin and Morro crashing into the pond. They quickly stood again, up to their chests in water, and hurried towards a large tree a dozen paces away from them. The current built up from the rain pushed against them, slowing their run.

  “Da Hoot didn’t go far, circling just overhead. He had his eyes locked on Morro, the plump little hedge hog, and let out a hoo as he swooped down again. He easily grabbed Morro by the scruff of his neck and plucked him out of the water.

  “As Da Hoot began to rise into the air, Durbin leapt up and grabbed his friend by the legs. Being so close to the tree, Da Hoot could not spread his wings all the way wide and tilted to the side. As they swung back out over the pond, Durbin wiggled Morro free from the owl’s grasp.

  “They fell a dozen otterstails to the water and splashed down hard. They stayed as submerged as they could, scrambling through the dark, roaring waters, and rolled off to the side underneath a giant root. They popped up out of the surface, gasping for breath.

  “Da Hoot glided down and perched on top of the root, where he tried to pry the two little critters out. But Durbin and Morro were able to push back far enough into the wet soil that the owl could not reach. Da Hoot tilted forward and looked upside down at the two critters, waiting for them to give up.

  “Durbin slashed at Da Hoot’s beak with his wooden sword, beckoning him away, but Da Hoot had no intention of leaving his post. He hooed as he kicked backwards and down into the wet soil, knocking loose the cover over Durbin and Morro’s heads. Durbin knew it would not be long before Da Hoot opened a hole between the root and the ground that he’d be able to snatch the two critters out of, so he had act fast. He told Morro that he would make a distraction to help him escape. He told Morro to wait right there under the root until the area was clear then to hurry to a nearby tree.

  “Morro agreed. Durbin quickly leapt out from under the root, stabbing up at Da Hoot at the same time. Da Hoot stumbled back, shocked at the brazen critter. Durbin had just enough time to dash out into the pond and scurry waist-deep through the muck.

  ”Da Hoot leapt off his perch and swooped down—

  “Durbin dove into the dark water and rolled to the side away from the owl’s grasp. He sprung back up to his feet and ran sideways down the trail towards the thick of the trees.

  ”Da Hoot pulled back mid-flight and turned towards Durbin again, hovering in the air as he planned his next move.

  “Morro, now with the coast clear, dashed out from under the root and hurried into a notch in an old oak tree.

  ”Durbin dodged back and forth as he ran, now up to his ankles in the water as the small stream thinned out along the shore. His long green cape fluttered behind him.

  “Da Hoot dove in for another attack. He opened his talons wide, zoomed down at Durbin and clasped his talons tight—

  “Durbin unlatched his cape as a gust of wind picked it up into the air and into Da Hoot’s grasp. Da Hoot pulled up into the air suddenly, flying away, thinking he had caught the small mouse, but as he saw Durbin scurry into a doorway at the base of the tree he’d realized he had been tricked. He released the cape and let it flutter to the ground, then flew back up into the darkness amongst the branches, perched where he could see all movement in the forest below.

  “Durbin hoped to wait the owl out. He stayed tucked deep inside the tree, holding his breath, his heart racing so loud that he was sure the owl could hear each and every thunderous thump.

  “The afternoon grew long and Durbin eventually peeked out to see if Da Hoot had left. He looked around at the tops of the trees and saw no movement. He looked across the path to the old tree that Morro was hiding in.

  “Morro called out to Durbin, asking if they we
re safe, as Morro too slowly emerged from his hiding spot. Durbin answered, saying that he assumed Da Hoot had left, and the two carefully edged towards the shore once more.

  “The leaf boat, having been abandoned in the middle of the pond, had crashed into a snarl of roots where the rapid rivers converged before carrying on down the hill. Morro was the closest to the boat and grabbed the edge, preparing to climb in, when he heard the call just above him.

  “Hoo! Hoo!

  “As quick as he could, Morro jumped into the boat. The craft flipped instantly and hurled Morro into the rapids.

  “Da Hoot appeared above him, swooping down at full force.

  “Morro grabbed the edge of the boat and flipped it over on top of himself, using the large leaf as coverage.

  “Da Hoot splashed down in front of Morro, clawing ferociously. He kicked at the leaf, knocking it away. He hovered in the air, just on the surface of the water, violently slashing and clawing with his talons, stirring the dark water into a foamy boil.

  “Morro backed away from each swipe, just barely avoiding being mauled, as a confusion of mist and feathers filled the air between them.

  “Then suddenly Da Hoot stopped for a moment and let the chaos settle. He locked eyes with Morro. Morro gasped, no place to hide.

  “Da Hoot flicked out his sharp claws and slashed forward—

  “Out of nowhere