Brian Jacques - Redwall #07 - Mariel of Redwall

"Saxtus, matey, are you all right? Have ye been wounded?"

Blinded by tears and hardly able to speak, Saxtus shook his head. "Oh, Flagg, I've just killed a living creature. It's horrible! One moment he was alive, and suddenly my spear hit him. Did you hear him scream? He's dead, Flagg. . , . Dead, and I killed him!"

Flagg turned to Mellus as she passed. "They've fired the gates. See what you can do, marm. I'll be with you in a moment."

Flagg raised Saxtus's tearstained face with a rough

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paw. "None of us wants to kill anybeast, matey, but this is a war! It's kill or be killed now. We're not just protectin' our own skins, there's the whole of Redwall an' what it stands for. What about that dormitory of Dibbuns do you want t' see them slain by searats? Make no mistake about it, young 'un, those rats'Il kill us all if they conquer our Abbey. Come on now, Saxtus, me old Cully. Let's see you up on your paws defendin' your home!"

Saxtus wiped away his tears. Grabbing his sling, he fitted a rock and sent it hurtling into the searats.

"Come on, fight, you dirty cowards. You won't conquer us!"

Rocks and spears, arrows and lances filled the air, zinging backwards and forwards between searat and Redwaller. Mother Mellus and three moles, Buxton, Drubber and Danty, rolled a barrel of water from the Abbey pond to damp down the back of the gates. Fore-mole and his crew hurled baskets of earth over the ramparts to smother the flames licking up the front of the gates.

Grubb the baby mole, together with the little twin otters Bagg and Runn, had escaped from the dormitory. Wakened by the noise and clangor of battle, they decided to take part and distinguish themselves as warriors. Wandering through the deserted kitchens inside the Abbey, they searched for suitable armament. Bagg gave a shout. "Whohoa! Looka these!"

Friar Alder's large vegetable chopping knives lay sharp and gleaming upon the worn worktable. They selected one each, dancing about and waving the dangerous blades.

"Heehee, let's make searat pies!"

"I'm goin' to chop their chief's head right off. Choppo!"

"Burrhurr, this hinfant'll skin 'ee a few. OiTl make they squeal!"

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Creeping out onto the Abbey lawn, they ducked behind some bushes as Mellus and the moles hurried by, trundling another big barrelful of water toward the main gate. Runn held a paw to his lips.

"Ssshh! Come on, this way."

They mastered the steps to the top of the north wall near the east end, helping each other to scramble up the big roughhewn stone stairs, pushing the knives ahead of them as they went. At the top an argument broke out over which knife belonged to whom.

"Hey, that's my knifethis one's yours!"

"No, Tain'tI had the pointy one with the brown handle."

"Yurr, give yon knoifer t' memoin were the big 'un."

As they were sorting out the weaponry, a three-hooked grapnel narrowly missed Bagg's head. It caught a crack in the stones, and the rope attached to it was pulled taut. Grubb patted Bagg's head.

"Boi 'okey, that were near a gudd shot. It nurly went roight daown you'm ear!"

The whirring and clanking of grapnels increased as all along the east wall metal hooks clamped into stonework cracks and ropes pulled twangingly tight. Runn climbed up on Grubb's head and peered down into the forest darkness.

"It's searats, lads. Climbin' up the ropes to get in here!"

Bagg glanced over to the west wall, where the battle was concentrated. "Huh, no good a-shoutin' f'r that lot, they got enough t' do. 'Sides, Ma Mellus'd tan our hides an' make us go back t' bed an' not give us no breakfast tomorrow an' keep us in our room all day an-"

Grubb placed a grimy paw over Bagg's mouth. "Oh, tell oi no more 'orrible stories, otter. Usn's cut 'ee ropes wi' our gurt knoifs. Hoa hoa! 'Ee rats'll fall bump on

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they bottems when 'ee ropes do be cutted. Oi'll start in 'ee middle, you two come frum both ends, hurr hurr!"

Kybo was nearly at the top of the wall. Holding his sword between his teeth, he looked back at the others swarming up the ropes, their eyes glinting triumphantly through the darkness as they hauled themselves upward, claw over claw. It was a great distance from the walltop to the woodland floor, and Kybo was not too fond of heights. He partially closed his eyes and tried not to look down, staring at the wallface in front as he pulled himself ever higher. The searat's claw was about to stretch up and grab the battlement at the walltop, when there was an ominous chuckle, a sawing noise and a discordant twang as the rope parted company with the metal grapnel it had been lashed to.

"Oh noooooooooo!"

Kybo sailed outward from the walltop and dropped like a stone.

Several searats looked up in amazement, their eyes following Kybo as he plunged to the dark floor far below. In a very short time ropes were popping and cracking as they were sliced through by the Redwall Friar's keen vegetable knives. The thud of bodies and the terrified screams of searats filled the night air. One rat plunged earthward without a sound, staring in puzzlement at the loose rope still firmly clenched in his claws.

Bagg, Runn and Grubb were truly having fun. It took only three slices to cut through the toughest rope, stretched taut as they were.

"A wunn, a two, an' a three, an' away 'ee do go, vermint!" Grubb chanted happily.

And away the "vermint" did go, with a loud wail of despair!

oo

Meanwhile, at the Abbey front Graypatch had drastically changed his opinion of the creatures he once called

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bumpkins; the accuracy of their stone-slinging had driven him and his searats off the flatlands and down into the ditch. Shaking with frustration, he ducked smartly as another salvo of rocks and homemade spears rattled overhead. The fire at the gates had been smothered under heaps of rubble. Bigfang was still lying senseless on the path; Frink, Fishgill and some others had their claws fully occupied trying to catch the little oarslaves, some of whom had crossed the ditch and were dodging about on the flatlands. Dripnose scrambled along the ditch bed to Gray patch. He was nursing a fractured limb, keeping his head well down as missiles rained in from above.

"Aagh! These creatures fight like mad things, Cap'n!"

"What did you expect them to do, weevilbrain throw flowers at us?"

"Maybe not, but we're out of spears an' arrows. The crew are havin' to make do with throwin' back the stuff that's been flung at us. Huh, they don't seem t' be short of arms atop o' that wall."

Graypatch spat contemptuously. "Homemade rubbish! There's not a proper sword or cutlass between the lot of 'em. Just wait till Kybo an' his buckos come over their precious wall we'll soon sort out the warriors from the wetnoses!"

Deadglim was nearby. He shook his head doubtfully.

"Well, where is Kybo an' the rest? They've been around there long enough to build a blasted wall, never mind climb one!"

A second later he regretted the outburst as Graypatch turned to him. "Avast there, smartmouth. Get yourself round to the back of the east wall an' see what's keepin' 'em. Look lively now. Dripnose, get Lardgutt an' see if you can drag that oaf Bigfang back down the ditch here. He's neither use nor ornament lyin' spark out on that

path."

oo

Mother Mellus seized a full basket of rubble and heaved

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it toward the ditch with a mighty effort. The screams and curses from below confirmed her accuracy. She winked at a group of enthusiastic slingthrowers. "That's the stuff to give 'em. Keep it up we've got them pinned down tight. How are you doing, Saxtus?"

The young mouse dodged a flying rock and slung one smartly back. "Fine, marm, just fine. Though it's all a bit puzzling; I've noticed that we only seem to be fighting about thirty or so searats, and they had nearly a hundred by Flagg's count. Where's the rest of 'em?"