11 The Peahog

CHAPTER 11 THE PEAHOG "Blaze!" Skyla shouted at the wall of water. Skyla and Tag were all alone on the ledge. "What happened?" Skyla cried, her fur trembling. "I don't know," Tag said. "But we need to find Blaze. Come on!"

He shuffled along the ledge as fast as he could. Skyla held on to his wing. Finally, they came out the other side of the waterfall. There were no trees or bushes on this side. Just a wide open valley with two snow-covered mountains in the distance. "Where is she?" Skyla said. "Do you think she's okay?" "I'll try to find her from above," Tag said. He took off into the sky, searching for any sign of Blaze or of the creature that had snatched her away.

"Can you see anything?" Skyla called from below. Below there was nothing but Something moved among the grass! Tag swooped down, and landed in the grass. Skyla raced over and stood beside him, holding out her slingshot. A small, colorful creature stood before them. The creature had a round snout like a pig, and a curly tail. Its body was covered in blue and green and purple feathers. Its green eyes were wide with fear.

"Where is Blaze?" Tag asked the creature. "What's a blaze?" the creature asked. Tag put away his dagger and sighed. "I'm Tag and this is Skyla." The creature smiled. "I'm Zeb," he said. "I'm a peahog." "It's nice to meet you," Skyla added. "Blaze is our friend," Tag explained. "We were all behind the waterfall. Then a creature with orange and red feathers grabbed Blaze and carried her away." "The creature had very long, sharp claws," Skyla added. "Have you seen anything like that?" Zeb nodded. "I've seen birds like that," he said. "They live over there."

He pointed at the mountains. "Thank you, Zeb!" Tag said. "There is a valley that runs between those two mountains," Zeb said. "It's the quickest way to the birds' nests. Follow the path and it will lead you there. But don't leave the path." "Why?" Skyla asked. Zeb frowned. "You don't want to find out." Tag shivered, thinking about Zeb's warning: Don't leave the path. Then Zeb wandered off through the grass. "Good luck!" he called.