of loggers in the distance. Ahead was a clearing where all the trees had been cut down. It looked like a war zone.
Up ahead was an area of clear-cut forest just off the logging road. He realized that this wasnât far from the macaw village.
Time was running out.
This was a big-time operation. The foreman drove a big truck, talking animatedly on the radio to his crew. A bulldozer headed through the brush, pushing smaller trees down. Blu landed and looked around, feeling helpless. What could one little bird do against all this?
âThink of something,â he urged himself. And when a huge harvester came straight at him, Blu did the only thing he could think of. He flew into the cab and yanked the keys from the ignition. âHey!â The driver grabbed him.
But Jewel was there. She swooped in and smacked the driver on the side of his face. Boink! The driver let Blu go and Blu and Jewel flew out of reach.
Trees were falling all around them. And there, in the middle of it all, were Linda and Tulio.
Blu flew straight for Linda, landing on her shoulder. And as the bulldozer roared toward them, Linda and Tulio locked hands. Blu feared the worstâbut the bulldozer finally stopped, just inches from Tulio. The driver was staring at somethingâand when Blu saw what it was, his heart swelled with pride: the entire flock of blue macaws, hundreds of them, ready to fight for the jungle.
âDad!â Jewel cried.
âBirds of blue feathers,â Eduardo began.
âHave to stick together!â Carla, Bia, and Tiago finished.
âGet them!â Eduardo shouted, and Blu knew they were all in this together now. The birds swarmed to attack the loggers, who hid behind their machines.
âItâs on, baby!â Pedro cried as Carla led the talent-show animals into battle.
Rocks rained down on the machines, denting roofs, jamming truck tracks, and plugging exhaust pipes. The excavator roared into action, uprooting a tree and swinging it toward the birds.
Then, a bulldozer clipped Eduardo, knocking him to the ground. Blu watched as a bulldozerâs shovel moved toward him. But before the shovel could strike, it was grabbed by an excavatorâs claw: Linda was in the driverâs seat!
The two machines battled for supremacyâuntil Felipe arrived with the red macaws.
The red macaws pelted the machine with seed pods, giving Linda the leverage she needed to tip the bulldozer over. The birds banded together to destroy the machines, unscrewing bolts and sticking coconuts in tailpipes. Together, the two tribes created a purple, swirling squadron of angry birds.
But it wasnât over yet. A tree fell, and behind it was the big boss, holding a match to a fuse that was connected to sticks of dynamite tied to every tree.
âHey! No pyrotechnics without parental permission!â Tiago shouted as he manned a construction claw. He scooped the boss upâbut the man managed to drop a lit match, which landed on the fuse, lighting it.
As the flame made its way up the fuse, Blu made a decision: he grabbed the dynamite string with his beak and flew with it into the sky.
âBlu, no!â Jewel cried, frightened.
Once Blu was above the trees, he used his best soccer kick to knock the dynamite away from his body . . . Boom! A huge explosion lit up the sky. Smoke enveloped Blu as he fell . . .
Chapter 13
âHello. Howâs it dangling?â
Blu blinked. He was upside down, tangled in vines below the treetops. A bird wearing a mask was next to him. âWhereâs Jewel?â Blu mumbled. âThe kids?â
âNot to worry, Blu,â the bird told him. âI will soon relieve you of your domestic duties.â
Blu blinked again. âSorryâdo I know you?â
The bird grimaced. âSorry indeed.â He clutched Bluâs neck, making him gasp.
âBob?â It was Carla, along with Bia, Tiago, and Jewel. âWhat are you
John R. Little and Mark Allan Gunnells