The Bellmaker - Jacques, Brian - Redwall 07 - The Bellmaker

“Aye, thats about the size of it, Joseph. Were at the mercy of the igh seas, matey, an tis comin on night too. Ill post lookouts in the riggin, and if they sights land we might be able to row an scull, sos we kin elp pore ole Pearl Queen inter shore. Then I kin fix er up.

Fortunately the night seas lay calm, with little wind or breeze to carry the vessel one way or another. Rosie and Foremole took first watch aft, with two shrews standing forard. Foremole turned his gaze up to the star-strewn skies. After a lengthy spell, in which he attempted a star count, he turned to his companion.

“Youm be vurry soilent, marm. Be ee thinken? he asked.

Rosie tossed an apple core overboard; it bobbed on the surface aimlessly. “What, er, oh yes, thinkin. Hmm, cant help wonderin how Tarquin is coping with the family back at Redwall. Im a dreadful creature really, wot? Coin off harum scarum, sailin* and questin, while poor old Tarkers is probly workin his paws to the bone lookin after the family. There must be a lot of butterfly in me somewhere.

Foremole scanned the dark horizon, his chin resting on both paws. “Youm baint no butterflyer, marm. Usns are only a doin our dooty, elpin friends and followin Martins request. Zurr Tarquin an ee liddle uns, hurr, oanly danger they be in is frumm eatin too much. Yore famly be a gurt lot safer at ee Abbey than usns out ere on ee gurt sea wi no rudder to steer us.

The optimistic hare pulled another apple from her tunic and began munching happily. “Youre right of course, old thing. Ill bet Tarquin and the family will be so bally tubby I wont recognize em when we return. Bunch of gluttons, scoffin away at all that lovely food, without a thought of their poor mater starvin out here on the deep. Wot?

Foremole smiled as another apple core went sailing over the stern rail and plopped into the sea. “Hurr, youm roight thurr, marm!

25

Joseph roused Durry, Rufe, and Patch for the dogwatch in the two hours before dawn. Rufe yawned and stretched mightily saying, “Looks like weve been bobbing upn down in the same place all night to me.

Patch cast a weighted line over the side, noting its progress. “No, mate, weve been movin all right, only slow, but steady.

Durry sniffed the still air appreciatively. “Wood bum-in in the galley, soon be breakfast time. Im fair starved, an thats a fact!

They had not long to wait. Finnbarr appeared with a tray. “Some early vittles fer me gallant watchbeasts. Come on, mates, theres a bowl of ot veggible soup apiece an some fresh baked bread. Tuck in!

While they ate, Finnbarrs keen eyes spotted the telltale signs to the east in the early dawn light. “There tis, land ho, buckoes!

Durry ran to the rail, bowl in paw. “Landwhere? I cant see anything.

The sea otter chided him merrily. “Thats cos yer a cellar og from an Abbey, but well make a sailor of yer yet, young Quill. Ahoy, Patch, yore a waterbeast, show Durry the landfall.

The Guosim shrew pointed with a fresh bread crust. “East. See that bundle of gray cloud, matey? Well, it aint cloud; thats land, though it dont look like much.

Finnbarr climbed into the rigging for a better view. “Aye, yer right, all rock an cliff, but any ole portll do fer rudderless ducks like us. Rufey, rouse all paws, well set sail fer any breeze tcarry us to it.

Under Finnbarr Galedeeps skillful navigation Pearl Queen hove alongside the high, grim rocks in bright morning sunlight. Log-a-Log stared up at the gray forbidding cliffs saying, “No place we can berth her around here, Finn!

The sea otter took up a boarding pike. “Thats a fact. Come on, crew, git pikes iT spars. Well push er round these rocks until we finds a landing!

Striving and sweating under the eye of the hot morning sun, the crew pushed at the rock face with pikes and spars. It was high noon when they found a landfall on the island. A rocky cove opening out into a forest-fringed beach, the high cliffs rearing either side of the entrance, it gave Pearl Queen scant leeway. Finnbarr winced as the vessel scraped through the opening with barely a splinter to spare; he called out orders to guide them through.

“Joseph, Durry, Rosie, git rope fenders oer the sides to protect er. You aloft, turn those mast spars sideways or theyll be smashed. Fatch, sound the depth with a lead!

Rufe had the best view of the incoming shore from his perch in the bows, and he could not believe his eyes. “Ships! Look, theres ships in here, Finnbarr!

And ships there were, but none of them in any fit state to sail on the sea. They were all wrecks. Finnbarr cast an experienced eye over the hulks that littered the shoreline where beach met cliff on both sides. “Harr, thats a sad sight, messmates! Thatn there is a merchant ship, tother side of it looks like a searat galley, an lookit that, an ole otter fishin smack. Tis long seasons since I clapped eyes on one o* those!

Joseph came up to stand beside Finnbarr. “But theyre all wrecked beyond repair. What dyou suppose happened here, Finn? he asked.

“Happened? Nothin, mate. Theyve all been thrown up ere by the sea, blown toward this island durin storms an forced through that gap in the rocks on floodtides. Ah well, mates, one beasts ill wind is anothers good fortune. Well soon find us a spankin good rudder in this cove!

Joseph scouted out a good axe, Log-a-Log took a broken and chipped sword to serve as a saw, and Finnbarr found his heavy mallet. Pearl Queen nosed into the soft sands of the shallows, and the trio of rudder finders prepared to wade ashore. Rosie pouted a little. “Bit of a bore, wot, all of us cooped up here on board; we could be off into those woods lookin for fresh water and provisions.

The Bellmaker wagged a warning paw at her. “Stay where you are, Rosie Woodsorrel, and pay attention to Finnbarr. We dont want the crew wandering loose about this island, you never know what beasts may be lurking inland.

A rudder was found sticking from the stern of a highbeached wreck. They got to work immediately, and, using the mallet and the axe, Log-a-Log and Joseph unpinned it from its moorings. Finnbarr stood on the deck of the wreck. “Thisns been a fast Corsair craft in er day, single masted an* flat bottomed for coastal raidin. Aye aye, why dont we use er mainmast to replace our broken one?

Rufe and his two friends attached themselves to a party of shrews who came aboard to remove the mast. It was hard and heavy work under the hot noonday sun. Rosie had given up sulking and appointed herself cook. She and Foremole were in the galley inventing a huge mixed-fruit and honey pudding for the evening meal.

“Wheres the candied chestnuts got to? Foremole, you villain, stop nibblin them an pass them here!

The mole relinquished the nuts with a guilty smile. “Burr, theym good uns, me an ee Abbot picked em last autumn; theym been soakin in ee cask of hunny ever since. Ho urr, oi dearly do luv a good candy chesknutter, hoo aye!

Rosie stuffed several in her mouth and spoke around them. “So do I. Dyou think its worth savin* any for the crew?

Pearl Queens crew worked late into the evening on Finnbarrs urging. “Fix er tday, sail away tomorrer, mates, thats the ticket! Besides, I dont like angin around on this island. I got a funny feelin* in me stum-mick about the place, tis too nice.

Joseph wielded the mallet, hammering home the last copper spikes that held the rudder brackets in place. He tested the tiller and found it swung well. “There, a good job well done! Hows the mast coming along, Log-a-Log, nearly there?

“Aye, almost ready, the shrew Chieftain called up from the forard hold. “Im seatin* it in pitch an caul kin it tight with oakum so itll be waterproof and stand firm.

Foremole and Rosie poked their heads from the galley. “Wem gotten noice cool tober ale yurr for ee!