Salixa (formerly called The Sacred Orb) was the daughter of Kludd and Nyra, , mate of Phirus,Erithe.
History[]
Salixa was laid on a summer's night, then called the , and her aunt, Eglantine, was with her by her mother Nyra to bow down and worship her. However, Eglantine snatched the egg while Nyra wasn't looking and flew off with her .
The two were chased after by Nyra's forces, however, they dove straight into a forest fire nearby, dodged the flames, and darted directly into a willow tree nearby, where the owner, a Short-eared Owl named Micah let them in and the Pure Ones while the egg hatched.
Eglantine, assuming the role of mother, names the hatched owlet Salixa, after an ancient Krakish word meaning "willow", as that was the kind of tree she hatched in.
Growing up at the , she became friends with a female Eagle Owl named Andrea, who the other Guardians owls had specifically put in the same hollow so they could be friends and Andrea could theoretically protect Salixa if the need came about, as Eglantine and the knew the importance of keeping her from the Pure Ones. However, the two were unaware of this, and were great companions from that moment on.
Salixa was chaw-tapped into the Blacksmithing Chaw, as Bubo noticed her skill in the forge, and when she came in to ask a question while everyone else slept, the fires turned blue. Going directly to parliament, he reported the incident to saying that that has never happened in his forge, and she should be tapped into the Blacksmithing Chaw, so he could study her ability.
In the Blacksmithing Chaw, Salixa excelled, and became very close to as she progressed, and the Great Horned owl called her "Li'l Flint", because since flint was thought of as special, and to , she was special. Deciding that she was getting so intelligent in the forge, he decided to have her sent to an older friend of his, the Rogue Smith of Silverveil.
Salixa learned even more from the Snowy, who revealed to her that she was in fact the long-lost sister of Madame Plonk: Thora Plonk. However, the two often clashed with their views on war and bloodshed, with Salixa thinking that there always has to be a way for both sides to compromise without the death of innocent lives, and Thora reasoning that often the only way to compromise is to sacrifice what you know is right and give the enemy what you want. And so, in about seven moons, Salixa left Silverveil on rather bad terms with the Rogue Smith.
Returning to the owls , she became assistant, and after great study, he learned that she had firesight, and that was why she seemed to see things in flames. She became a very well-known and popular owl at the Tree, and after she took her Guardian Oath, Eglantine, who had become her foster-mother, decided to tell her the truth about her true parents. Salixa, after hearing that her father had been killed by the Guardians in the Battle of the Burning, her mother had lost an eye during that same battle, and they had suspected that Nyra had hatched another owlet who was about six moons younger than her, felt that she had been lied to for her whole life. She then left the Tree in a rage, and returned to the Rogue Smith, saying that she had abandoned the Guardians and wanted to become a Rogue Smith. Thora replied by saying that she couldn't hide forever, and they only lied to her for her protection. Salixa, blinded with anger, then sped away to Ambala, where she thought she could live for the rest of her life. She accidentally happened upon a where a family of flying snakes were living, and he explained that she needed to just rest there for a while. They, after letting her stay for a day and two nights, sent her off with a daughter of theirs, a young yet hardworking one named Ofelia, who would travel with Salixa and be her nestmaid as she journeyed around Ambala and The Barrens.
After about a moon and a half of traveling, Ofelia suggested that they go to the Beyond, where Salixa could set up her own forge and live out her days. When they entered the area, they were greeted by a young male Barn Owl named Phirus, who introduced himself by saying that he was a Rogue Collier apprentice, and they looked lost. Salixa, who never wanted to admit failure, said that they knew where they were going, and that they were headed toward the Beyond. Phirus laughed at this, as they had already entered the Beyond the Beyond. He then led the two to a place where his strict, but kind mentor, Mara, a female Great Gray Owl lived. Salixa accidentally revealed her firesight, and Mara knew that with the rarity of such an ability, there was a great chance she might be the successor of Hoole. The old Great Gray then decides that she and Phirus will teach her to be a collier.
Having not been able to find her, Eglantine, Primrose, The Band, plus Micah, Andrea, and gi, flew off towards Silverveil, where the Rogue Smith says that she last saw Salixa heading towards Ambala, where they interviewed every owl they could find, and where all directed North, towards the Beyond. Eglantine's suspicions were correct: Salixa was going to retrieve the Ember of Hoole.
Having already been in the Blacksmithing Chaw, Salixa found it quite easy to be a collier. Mara remarked that she flew just as well as any Short-eared Owl, and that such a skill would be very useful when looking for Embers. Eventually deciding to take the group to the Ring of Sacred Volcanoes, Mara then revealed to Salixa that she may very well be the Successor to Hoole, as many owls had spoken of in legends.
While Mara set up her camp, Phirus, Ofelia, and Salixa flew around the area, eventually coming across a MacAngus outflanker named Ronaan, who convinced Lord Argead, the pack leader, to let them stay for the day.
Nyra mother, and her son, Nyroc, having seen in a fire that Salixa was looking for the Ember of , gathered their forces and headed north from St. Aggie's to the Beyond, while Eglantine and company finally arrive. Meanwhile, the Fengo receives a vision that an evil Barn Owl is seeking the Ember, and they must stop them. He, misinterpreting this Barn Owl is Salixa, gathers the Watch, and they rush in to stop her as she dives down near the volcanoes to see the Ember.
Salixa, as she nears Hrathg'har, sees the volcano turn transparent before her eyes, and she dives down in almost a kill-spiral to retrieve it, and Eglantine and the others see this in shock and horror, as the volcano looks as if it's going to erupt. It erupts violently, but Salixa comes gliding back out of the lava, the Ember of Hoole in her talons. Ronaan sees the Watch rushing to stop her, and gathers a byrrgis to come and cut them off until they can explain the truth. Nyra, Nyroc, and The Pure Ones swoop in, taking everyone by surprise. The Fengo realizes his mistake, and orders the Watch to stop the evil owls trying to kill Salixa. Soon, every smith, collier, wolf, and owl is fighting to protect the newly-crowned Queen. Nyra orders Nyroc and he complies, but is blinded by the light of the Ember mid-flight, and Andrea grabs him by the wing and flings him to the ground. Nyra, in a rage, tries to talls Eglantine, but Salixa darts in and slashes her across the back, causing her mother to go.
Eglantine, Salixa, Andrea, Ofelia, Phirus, Soren, Gylfie, Digger, Twilight, Micah, Otulissa, and Mara all return to the Great Tree, where they sadly discover that Boron and Barran had died, but had left a message to tell everyone that their new Queen had come.
And thus, Salixa is proclaimed Queen, the Ember is now residing in the Tree, and within seven moons, Phirus becomes Salixa's mate.
In the moons following, Salixa lays three eggs, and naming them Cato, Neco, and Erithe after they hatch. Cato is clever and loves to be blacksmithing, Neco is a natural collier and makes many instructors proud, and Erithe is always reading books about the history of the pure one.
After a rogue blue owl by the name of Striga washes up on the shores of Hoole Island, Salixa begins to inquire about his origins. Striga tells them that he was running away from the Middle Kingdoms, and got caught in a spring rainstorm. The Parliament then decides to send the Chaw of Chaws with Striga to the Middle Kingdom, but the Striga refuses, saying that he would never return to that place if he had no other choice.
The Chaw of Chaws then enlists the help of Bess, and she believes that Theo went to the Middle Kingdoms through a special wind tunnel route called the River of Wind. Bess then suggests that following in Theo's wingbeats would probably result in the same thing.