07 The Tall Trees

CHAPTER 7 THE TALL TREES "Are you Okay?" Tag asked. Skyla nodded. "That was close!" she puffed. "What was that?" Tag scanned the water. "It looked like some kind of huge crocodile," he said. "We need to get out of here in case it comes back."

"Yes," Skyla agreed. "Maybe that creature is what the toads were trying to warn us about?" "Maybe..." Tag said. They made their way along the branch. "The water is more shallow down here," Tag told her. They jumped into the water, and walked toward the island. It rose up out of the water ahead and was covered with tall trees. "Let's find Blaze and get out of here," Skyla said.

Tag checked his sack to make sure that the map, the Ember Stone, and the feathers were okay after being underwater. The map was a little damp, but he could still see the pictures. "Come on," he said as they reached the edge of the island. "The tall trees are right ahead!" Skyla started to run, but then she coughed. "ACK! ACK!" "Are you okay?" Tag asked. Skyla waved a paw at him. "I'm fine. Come on, let's go rescue our friend!" Tag looked up in wonder. The trees towered over them. An enormous nest sat at the end of every branch. But the nests weren't made from twigs and leaves, like Tag's nest. These nests seemed to have grown out of the trees from small twisted branches.

"Wait!" Tag said, holding Skyla's paw. He pointed up to the nests high above them. Long, brightly colored feathers hung down over the edge, like a long cloak. From far away they almost looked like they could be firehawks. Close-up though, Tag could see that these birds were much, much larger and had curved purple beaks.

"There's a giant bird inside every nest," Skyla whispered. "How are we going to find Blaze without being seen?" "The golden feathers showed us that Blaze was in one of these nests," Tag said. "So she must be here somewhere. We are just going to have to wait until the birds leave before we investigate." Skyla sighed and sat down beneath one of the trees. Tag sat beside her. "ACK! ACK!" Skyla coughed again. "Shhh," Tag whispered as he gently covered her mouth with his wing. "We can't let them know we're here." Skyla nodded. And they waited. Suddenly, there was a loud CAWWWWW!

Tag and Skyla hid behind a tree trunk. "Look!" Skyla cried. "The birds are all flying away!" The giant birds had taken to the air. They followed the largest cawing bird. "That one looks like their leader," Tag said. "I bet they're going to find food." Tag and Skyla looked at each other. "Time to find Blaze!" Skyla said.